Cristian Albu
Deputy Chairman, Head of 20th and 21st Century Art, Asia Pacific
Based in Hong Kong, Cristian Albu is Deputy Chairman, Head of 20th and 21st Century Art at Christie’s Asia Pacific. Cristian manages sales and operations for the category in Asia and is instrumental in furthering the presentation of Western contemporary art at Christie’s in the region.
Since Cristian joined Christie’s, the 20th and 21st Century Art category has attained historic results in two consecutive years – achieving US$550 million in 2021, the highest annual total for the category at Christie’s Asia, and US$402 million in 2022, the second highest. Cristian was a key figure in the sales of Pablo Picasso’s Buste d’homme dans un cadre from the Estate of Sir Sean Connery, which sold for HK$175 million / US$22 million in May 2022, becoming the second most expensive work by Picasso sold at an auction house in Asia; Gerhard Richter’s Abstraktes Bild 747-1, which realised HK$140 million / US$18 million in December 2021; and Adrian Ghenie’s Pie Fight Interior 12 in May 2022, which fetched HK$81 million / US$10 million, setting a new world record for the artist.
Cristian's curatorial direction and network have been pivotal to some of Christie's most acclaimed, museum-quality exhibitions. These include 'Flesh and Soul: Bacon/Ghenie' in 2022, the world’s first joint exhibition of the two iconic artists Francis Bacon and Adrian Ghenie in Hong Kong and Seoul; and 'Heads On: Basquiat & Warhol', the first joint exhibition of Jean-Michel Basquiat and Andy Warhol in Seoul in over three decades, hosted by Christie's and Hyundai Card during Frieze Seoul in 2023.
Prior to joining the team in Hong Kong in 2020, Cristian began his career at Christie’s in London in 2012, where he played a major part in 10 highly successful auction seasons. Cristian curated the renowned private and museum loan exhibitions ‘Reflections on the Self’ (2015), ‘About the Line: An Exhibition Exploring the Power of the Line in 20th and 21st Century Art’ (2017), and ‘Sacred Noise’ (2018). He contributed significantly to the 2016 Defining British Art Evening Sale, which resulted in numerous world records. He also headed Christie’s October Evening sale in London in 2016, which doubled its low estimate and established new world records for eight artists.
Cristian graduated with a First Class Degree from Lower Danube University with a BA in International Economic Relations. He went on to complete a Master’s degree in Art Business at the Sotheby’s Institute in London, where he wrote his dissertation on Eastern European Modern and Contemporary Art.