Opening bid

The interest is not solely from local inhabitants looking for recognised classic works, regional art is also establishing itself on the global scene, fuelled by the rise in personal wealth among GCC residents. "The region is still predominantly a producer from our point of view," says Girling. "But the increase in the production of art has been a long time coming.

The art market used to divide itself up timewise -19th Century, Renaissance and so on - but now there's a growing sense in emerging economies of individuals wanting to buy something that relates to the culture that has given them their wealth. So if you've made your million in the UAE, you want to buy something that reminds you of that region.

Bonhams itself specialises in sales outside of what might be considered the norm. The world's oldest surviving Rolls Royce, dating from 1904, was auctioned off last month for over US$7 million. December also saw the group hold the spectacular sale of every single item in London's landmark Savoy hotel, from the pot plants at the entrance, to the dining room crockery, the ballroom's parquet floor and the guest reception desk. The company is therefore quite willing to launch sales in areas where others might question the profitability.

Girling himself sees a bright future ahead for regional pieces: "It's been slightly late to the table but there's now a real emerging niche interest, not just in Islamic art from 300 or 400 years ago but an interest in the art that's being produced now. And that's quite new and it's an interesting phenomenon.

Indeed, the ebullient CEO sees this as the next logical step for the fast-developing regional cities. Pointing to the recent deals that are bringing global cultural brands such as the Guggenheim and Louvre to the Gulf, Girling highlights that this is what has so far been missing. "You've got the tennis, the golf, the sailing, the car racing - it's all here," he explains.

But you've got to think what else people might want for their leisure activities. The answer is that they want to visit museums, they want to visit galleries. And, if they are investing in homes, they're going to want to get things to put in there. So you'll get these, and where you get galleries you get auction houses.

Girling aims to cast the net wide for the company's sales to appeal to as many prospective customers as possible. With a large percentage of residents coming from disparate parts of the world the common denominator for potential buyers is the desire to capture a part of their experience of living in the GCC. "I'd like to think that in the main it's people who've made their life here and are proud to be part of what's happened here," he says.

They're confident enough to say ‘I don't need Old Master Paintings from Italy or Expressionist Masters painted in France 100 years ago'. This is a cultural melting pot so you have to cater for the huge spread of customers that are here to achieve that or it's a non starter.

Tastes have also evolved in the last 20 years, as art has turned from being the exclusive premise of the avid collector to become more accessible to the general public.

Rather than following established authorities strictures to the letter consumers are displaying the confidence in their own tastes that Girling highlights to choose their personalised styles: People are quite happy to buy a piece of antique art and put it alongside some contemporary furniture as a juxtaposition. It's no longer the idea that you start one sort of collection and stick to it, people now dip in and out of different things. You'll take advice but you're not going to go to these places and be told what type of sideboard you have to have to match your coffee table - people want to put their individual stamp on things much more now.

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