Sotheby's and Christie's are heading east to seek their respective fortunes. The two auction houses are offering more than $26 million of Asian art this week in London. The lots themselves are attracting record numbers of buyers from mainland China, a section of the market that has shown signs of life this year. Chinese buyers were quite active in Hong Kong last month.

Nicholas Chow of Sotheby's told Bloomberg News, ""We've seen a really aggressive push from mainland Chinese collectors during the last season of sales" and that "they're buying things at the very highest level." An Imperial jade seal, for example, moved for GBP3.6 million on Tuesday, six times the high-end presale estimate.

On November 3, Christie's sold an aggregate GBP5.7 million, beating the presale estimate of GBP5.2 million. Of the 319 lots, a third didn't move. The top seller was an eighteenth century enamel model of a Buddhist shrine, which beat its presale range of GBP60,000 to GBP80,000 with a hammer sale of GBP229,250. Nine of the top 10 most expensive items went to buyers from Asia.

Collectors from mainland China are quite eager to repatriate art and other objects from their heritage, particularly the Qing and Ming dynasties ... a fact of which the auction houses are fully aware. Christie's sent 210 invitations to mainland Chinese for its 12th annual Asian Art in London event, which ends November 7, 2009. Sotheby's pursued a similar number of collectors. Bonhams has invited 30 new buyers from mainland China.

In October, the Sotheby's Hong Kong art auction was good for $170 million, with plenty of bidding and buying by mainland Chinese buyers.

Ferraris are particularly enticing purchases for the wealthy, but special Ferraris have proven themselves even more attractive to those with the means. Case in point this one-of-a-kind 599 GTB Fiorano which was hand-painted by Chinese artist Lu Hao on the pattern of the sought-after Ge Liln porcelain from the Song Dynasty. This unique example on which we reported last month is based on the limited-edition 599 China special, and was auctioned on Tuesday for the princely sum of $1.77 million to an unnamed collector in Shanghai. Proceeds go towards scholarships opportunities for Chinese automotive engineering students to continue their studies in Italy, along with a handful of other Ferrari memorabilia under the watchful eyes of the legendary Michael Schumacher, Ferrari executives and faculty from the beneficiary institutes.

A combination of elephant and man. This is one very interesting piece of artwork, and although I think it's more than a little strange I can still appreciate it is beautiful in it's own way. Called 'People Belong to Elephant' it's part of a collection by artist Chen Changwei that's based on the Chinese zodiac. I came across this piece at Vivre and as far as I can right now they're only carrying three of the zodiac sculptures (see them in the gallery) but I'm curious to see the rest. As part of a limited edition of only 8, this People Belong to Elephant sculpture stands 31" tall and is available as part of Daum's China Collection for $76,500.

Haviland Limoges, a maker of fine porcelain is a nominee for a Luxist Award for best dishware.

The Haviland Limoges story began in 1842 when David Haviland, enthralled with the fine china coming from Limoges, France moved across the Atlantic to begin his own factory. Haviland was an importer working in New York. A customer brought in a broken tea cup looking for a match. Haviland's search for a match eventually led him to Limoges. The pure white kaolin clay found in the region produced a uniquely delicate eggshell porcelain. Not content to import the designs of others he set up his own operation. Unlike other dishware factories in the area Haviland China did not send its products to Paris for decoration. Instead Haviland set up a studio in his factory in order to create patterns that would appeal to American shoppers.

Along his sons Charles-Edward and Théodore, David Haviland grew the company and Haviland Limoges provided the state dining service for several American presidents including Abraham Lincoln, Rutherford B. Hayes and Theodore Roosevelt. The work of Impressionist artists also influenced Haviland's floral designs which went on to become wildly popular in the United States.

Today the company also sells silver, crystal and giftware but remains famous for its dishes. It is estimated that there are as many as 60,000 Haviland china patterns. Haviland Limoges produces some older designs as well as coming out with new collections to appeal to both modern clients and traditionalists. For over a century Haviland china has remained a standard for elegant tables.

Bernardaud is a Luxist Award nominee for best in dishware.

Bernardaud's porcelain collections are characterized by delicate colors and patterns in combination with beautiful designs, making its china a match for both classic and contemporary settings alike.

The roots of Bernardaud, which date back to 1863, are in the Limoges region, the cradle of the French porcelain industry. To this day, the company remains one of the oldest and last-remaining companies to be family-owned and operated in Limoges. The insight and techniques for the production of Bernardaud porcelain have been handed down from father to son. Michel Bernardaud is the fifth generation to become the worldwide ambassador of his family brand.

Since 1863, Bernardaud has upheld a corporate philosophy of cutting-edge innovation, which has placed the company at the forefront of Limoges porcelain manufacturers and exporters today. The company uses only the finest quality 20 to 23 carat gold and the richest grades of platinum to decorate its dinnerware patterns. Both gold and platinum are specially adapted for use on china, for the ultimate in wear, flexibility, and practicality. Every year, Bernardaud uses hundreds of kilos of gold to embellish its designs, lending every gold-accented pattern its inimitable stamp of authenticity.

A trendsetter in design, Bernardaud was the first, for example, to bring out square porcelain flatware. It also offers custom-designed porcelain for individual clients, embassies, hotels, restaurants, celebrities, and corporations.

Pickard China, an American classic, has been nominated for a Luxist Award in the category of best dishware.

The story of the Pickard China company began in 1893 when Wilder Pickard established the company in Edgerton, Wisconsin. Later the company moved to Chicago. It specialized in hand-painted art pieces and tea sets. Artists from the Art Institute of Chicago and all over Europe came to Chicago to decorate unique ceramic pieces which are now prized among collectors.

Wilder's son, Austin Pickard, moved the company to its present Antioch, Illinois location in 1930 and introduced the white china with the lion trademark that the company is known for today. Pieces are still made in the Pickard factory in Antioch. Each piece passes through a minimum of 21 stages and three inspections. Patterns are decorated with 24K gold, pure platinum and brilliant cobalt. In 1977, Pickard, Incorporated was selected by the U.S. State Department to manufacture the official china service used by our embassies and other diplomatic missions around the world. Pickard has also been commissioned to produce custom china for Air Force One, Blair House and Camp David and has produced china services for the King of Saudi Arabia, Hilton, Sheraton, and Marriott hotels, General Motors, the U.S. Air Force and the Queen of England.

Continuing to evolve with today's tastes, Pickard makes four modern designs created by star decorator Kelly Wearstler. The Kelly Wearstler for Pickard collection boasts a mélange of styles and patterns ranging from organic to graphic, traditional to modern and delicate to bold. Pickard also produces for patterns for designer and home decor author Charlotte Moss. The company also offers custom china and monogrammed pieces, carrying on a proud American tradition of fine dishware.

No matter what is going on in the world, some country is always churning out billionaires. RIght now it's China. The Hurun Report in Shanghai recently released its Hurun RIch List which shows that the ranks of China's wealthy are growing at a rapid rate. The cut-off for the list was raised by 50 percent up to $150 million and as the Wall Street Journal reports, it still grew by 180 people. On the list there are 130 U.S.-dollar-equivalent billionaires. Hurun Report publisher Rupert Hoogewerf suspects the list may actually not reflect just how many billionaires there are in China because he says that many have built up wealth in a more private way. Car-battery maker Wang Chuanfu sits at the top of the list with $5.1 billion and China's richest woman, paper-recycling tycoon Zhang Yin is right after him in the second slot.

We're a step closer to finding out who will win the biannual Hugo Boss Prize, which is bestowed for achievement in contemporary art. Vying for the $100,000 award this year are the finalists just announced by the Guggenheim: Cao Fei from China, Hans-Peter Feldmann from Germany, Natascha Sadr Haghighian from Iran, Roman Ondak from the nation formerly known as Czechoslovakia, Walid Raad from Lebanon and Apichatpong Weerasethakul from Thailand.

In addition to the cash – and possibly more valuable in the long run – the Hugo Boss Prize winner will also get a 2011 exhibition at the Guggenheim in New York. The winners are selected by a panel of art professionals that includes Ysmil Raymond, curator of the Dia Art Foundation; Udo Kittelmann, director of Berlin's Nationalgalerie and Tirad Zolghadr, an independent writer and curator.

Last year, the honor went to Emily Jacir. Previous winners include Matthew Barney, Douglas Gordon, Pierre Huyghe, Rirkrit Tiravanija and Tacita Dean.

Unlike most art prizes, this one stipulates has no age, geographic or medium-specific qualifications. It is as open as open can be.

Vacheron Constantin recently opened up a new boutique in Hong Kong. To celebrate, they have also released three new limited edition Dragon watches. There will only be nine of each of the three watches made in this highly limited edition. The dragon motifs are each hand made, involving an incredible amount of delicate work. in addition to the hand applied decoration, there is also a fair amount of guilloche machine engraving that also requires a very skilled artist to apply.

Each of the three watches is done in a different shade of gold, along with a different image of the Chinese style dragon. Vacheron Constantin is well versed in artistic watch creations such as this. The Mask collections come to mind when thinking of their talents here. Inside the watches is a manufacture made Vacheron Constantin movement, and each is attached to a high quality black alligator strap. Vacheron Constantin is serious about China, not just Hong Kong, as the country is poised to breed a new generation of watch buyers given the current economic growth there in comparison to the rest of the world. Plus, Hong Kong remains one of the most important watch market capitals of the world - so the opening of the new "Flagship Boutique" by Vacheron Constantin there makes sense. I suspect it is the only place that these watches can be acquired.

Ariel Adams publishes the luxury watch review site aBlogtoRead.com.

A Ferrari's a coveted object. A limited edition Ferrari even more so. But a one-of-a-kind Ferrari is another ballgame altogether. The path to the unique creation you see here passed through all those phases, and then some.

The Italian exotic automaker recently updated its flagship 599 GTB Fiorano supercar with the Handling GT Evoluzione package and took its dynamic performance to another level. But for the Chinese market, Ferrari unveiled a limited run of 12 special editions, with unique design touches carried out by Chinese artist Lu Hao. And of those 12, one has been made even rarer.

The artist has taken this solitary example and hand painted a greenish pearl white pattern reminiscent of the coveted Ge Liln porcelain of the Song dynasty. It's the only one of its kind to be made, and will be auctioned off for charity at a special event to be held in Beijing on November 3, where one collector/benefactor will drive away in this most special of special editions.

What a difference a year makes!

Buyers brought their wallets to the Sotheby's auction in Hong Kong Monday, shelling out plenty of cash for pieces by Chinese masters. Sanyu's "Lotus et Poissons Rouge" fetched $4.7 million – beating the presale estimate soundly. But, the price was still considered low for Sanyu. In fact, the success of the auction is tainted by the fact that estimates aren't reflective of past sales levels. A painting by abstract artist Zao Wou-ki pulled in $2 million for the house.

Of course, there was plenty of optimism, fostered by both the performance relative to estimates and a burning desire to be out of the art market slump. Hua Yuzhou, who owns a gallery in Shanghai, says in Bloomberg News, "Give it a few months and these pieces may run beyond our reach again."

Red Prancing Horse, meet the Red Dragon. As mainland China steadily moves away from a communist system to a capitalist economy, the country and the upper crust of its billion+ inhabitants have turned into a vital market for Ferrari, and to mark the growing centrality of the Chinese market to Maranello's global expansion, Ferrari has made this special edition 599 GTB Fiorano.

Designed in conjunction with Chinese artist Lu Hao, the 599 China Limited Edition features such unique details as a rev-counter with ancient Chinese characters, a jade-green starter button and special fitted luggage decorated with the Silk Road that Italian explorer Marco Polo took across China. Add to that the HGTE performance package and a gray roof to mirror the experimental 599XX's and you've got one very special edition indeed. But Ferrari will only be offering a dozen examples, exclusively available in China.

Hong Kong will come to life with the sound of a gavel on Tuesday, October 6, 2009. Sotheby's will be holding its Modern and Contemporary Asian Art auction, which will consist of three sessions: 20th Century Chinese Art, Modern and Contemporary Southeast Asian Paintings and Contemporary Asian Art. More than 380 works by Asian artists will come to auction, and the house expects close to $25 million in sales. Beyond bringing some new cash into Sotheby's, the auction is likely to give a sign as to the strength of the market, particularly with the November sales following shortly. Christie's will be holding its Hong Kong auctions on November 29 and 30.

In a sense, this is the one-year point for the art auction market. It was a year ago – in Hong Kong – that the world saw the effects of the financial crisis unfold in the art market. So, this bit of trivia will be front-of-mind as bidders make tough decisions on which pieces to acquire.

Sotheby's is betting big on the Contemporary Asian Art category, hoping that 190 lots will bring in $12.5 million in sales. High-profile artists are represented, including Guogiang Cai, Minjn Yue and Zhengjie Feng. There will be 130 lots in the Modern and Contemporary Southeast Asian Paintings auction, including I Nyoman Masriadi's The man from Bantul, The Monster, which is estimated at $100,000. The 20th Century Chinese Art category has a mix of safe and speculative pieces.

As China booms, Beijing's real estate market has followed and high-end real estate development projects are emerging. Imperial Axis is a luxury project planned for the downtown area. Billed as a "royal dwelling place of the world," is located opposite the Bell and Drum Tower and overlooks the Jing Mountain. It is said to offer 360-degree views of the surrounding area. There will be just 30 units with top-level appliances and finishes. Not too much is known about the property but the units may command some of the top prices in Beijing and are designed to appeal to an international clientele.

Just about every culture has its Autumn festivals. In China, the Harvest Moon or Mid-Autumn Festival celebrates the time when the harvest moon is full in the sky, signaling a time of abundance after the harvest. Should you happen to be in China in the next few weeks, you can travel along the Yangzi River on the Sanctuary M.S. Yangzi Explorer from Sanctuary Retreats and experience the magic of a time when people gather on hilltops, riverbanks and park benches to gaze at the brightest moon of the year. During this celebratory time, guides onboard the boat will educate guests on many Chinese customs, share folk tales inspired by the festival, teach and play the game of Lantern Riddles and invite guests to sample some of the many varieties of the traditional Moon Cake. Cabins are still available and rates during these peak season 3- and 4-night sails begin at $1,750 per person sharing in a deluxe cabin on the main deck.