Sotheby's Hong Kong sold 125 works from Japan's Okada Museum of Art in a white-glove auction on Saturday, netting $88 million (plus fees). The sale set auction records for Japanese artists Kitagawa Utamaro and Hokusai, with Utamaro's *Fukagawa in Snow* fetching $7.1 million and Hokusai's *The Great Wave Off the Coast of Kanagawa* selling for $2.8 million. The collection was sold by museum founder Kazuo Okada, an 83-year-old billionaire, to settle a $50 million legal bill stemming from a long-running feud with casino magnate Steve Wynn. Okada's law firm, Bartlit Beck, successfully pursued the fee in binding arbitration after Okada contested the amount.
The sale matters because it demonstrates the enduring strength of the Asian art market, with fierce competition from collectors across Japan, China, Europe, and the US. The white-glove result and record prices signal robust demand for top-tier East Asian art, even amid personal financial pressures on the seller. The auction also highlights how high-stakes legal disputes among billionaires can drive major art-market events, and it underscores the global reach of Sotheby's Hong Kong as a platform for trophy collections.