Artworks get a dose of reality

Furniture on display at a shopping center in Haikou, South China's Hainan province, Dec 10, 2011. [Photo/IC]

In the last decade, demand for rosewood furniture soared in China. The market was worth over 100 billion yuan in 2012, according to Greenpeace, a global environmental protection organization.

Yet, the furniture sector saw demand slowing in the last couple of years. Prices of rosewood furniture plunged up to 30 percent, according to the China Rosewood Association.

Similarly, prices of objects made of coconut husk, which was once considered highly precious in China, have plummeted. A bracelet with a cluster of 108 coconut husks used to sell for over 5,000 yuan. Now, it is hard to even find sales of coconut husks in the market as demand has been tepid.

Liu Shuangzhou, a professor at the law school of the Central University of Finance and Economics, said: "Consumers should consider their income levels and decide how much they should spend on artworks. Artwork consumption should be transformed from an elite consumption to a mass-based business.

"Investors should assess the risks of investing in certain artworks and fine goods, rather than assess their value. And buyers must appraise artworks themselves. All this is consistent with the concept of supply-side reform, which emphasizes that goods should be priced cost-effectively and in line with their actual value."