藝術(shù)品會成為中美貿(mào)易戰(zhàn)的犧牲品嗎？

The United States has started a trade war with China, and art is caught in the cross-fire.

美國已開始了一場與中國的貿(mào)易戰(zhàn)，戰(zhàn)火殃及到藝術(shù)品。

The administration announced this month that President Trump had proposed duties as high as 25 percent on $200 billion worth of imported Chinese goods “to encourage China to change its harmful policies.” The proposed tariffs, initially set at 10 percent, followed two earlier rounds of penalties.

美國政府本月宣布，特朗普總統(tǒng)已提議對價值2000億美元的中國進口商品征收高達25%的關(guān)稅，目的是為了“鼓勵中國改變其有害的政策”。在這個原本定為10%的關(guān)稅提案之前，已經(jīng)征收了兩輪懲罰性的關(guān)稅。

The latest list of targeted Chinese goods ran to 205 pages. It included sand blasting machines; eels, fresh or chilled (excluding fillets); hats; and, at the bottom of the last page, paintings and drawings executed entirely by hand, original sculptures, and antiques more than 100 years old.

新一輪關(guān)稅針對的中國商品清單長達205頁。包括噴砂機、新鮮或冷藏鰻魚(不包括魚片)、帽子，在清單最后一頁底部還有完全手工繪制的油畫和素描，原創(chuàng)的雕塑，以及100年以上的古董。

The tariffs would apply to all artworks that originated in China, regardless of how they entered the United States. That means American buyers could be required to pay 25 percent more for a Ming dynasty bowl sold by a British owner at an auction in New York, as well as for a painting by a young Beijing-based artist at a gallery in Hong Kong.

所有源自中國的藝術(shù)品都將被征收關(guān)稅，不管這些藝術(shù)品是怎樣進入美國的。這就意味著，美國買家可能需要多支付25%的價錢，不管他是在紐約的拍賣會上購買英國所有者出售的明代瓷碗，還是在一家香港畫廊購買一位年輕北京藝術(shù)家的作品。

The announcement has caused outrage in the art world.

新一輪關(guān)稅的宣布引起了藝術(shù)界的憤怒。

James Lally, the founder of J.J. Lally & Co., a dealer based in New York that specializes in Asian art, said that the proposed tariffs were “a matter of great concern” to museums, collectors, curators and dealers worldwide.

詹姆斯·拉里(James Lally)是J·J·拉里公司(J.J. Lally & Co.)的創(chuàng)始人，這家總部位于紐約的公司專門從事亞洲藝術(shù)品的交易。拉里說，世界各地的博物館、收藏家、策展人和交易商“高度關(guān)注”政府建議的關(guān)稅。

“It will have a chilling impact,” he said. “It will quickly reduce the market for Chinese art in America to a backwater.”

“這將產(chǎn)生可怕的影響，”他說。“美國的中國藝術(shù)品市場會迅速成為一潭死水。”

Professional organizations like the Art Dealers Association of America, the Association of Art Museum Directors and the British Antique Dealers’ Association have also stated their opposition to the proposal.

美國藝術(shù)交易商協(xié)會、藝術(shù)博物館館長協(xié)會以及英國古董交易商協(xié)會等專業(yè)組織都對建議的關(guān)稅表示反對。

Dozens of companies voiced concerns to trade officials during six days of public hearings in Washington this past week, many warning that the proposed tariffs would hurt American consumers.

上周，在華盛頓舉行的為期六天的公開聽證會上，數(shù)十家公司向貿(mào)易官員表達了擔憂。許多公司警告說，建議的關(guān)稅將損害美國消費者的利益。

Peter Tompa, a lawyer based in Washington, represented two lobbying groups that work on behalf of museums, dealers and collectors at the hearings on Wednesday. Mr. Tompa said a member of the trade committee asked him one question: Since art is a luxury item, wouldn’t people pay?

華盛頓的律師彼得·湯姆帕(Peter Tompa)在周三的聽證會上代表了兩個博物館、交易商和收藏家游說團體。湯姆帕說，貿(mào)易委員會的一名成員問了他一個問題：既然藝術(shù)是奢侈品，人們難道不會愿意出錢嗎?

Mr. Tompa said he had told the committee that the main problem was slow turnover of inventory in the art trade and that a tariff would mean greater capital outlays by dealers.

湯姆帕說，他告訴貿(mào)易委員會，藝術(shù)品貿(mào)易中的主要問題是庫存周轉(zhuǎn)緩慢，征收關(guān)稅將意味著加大交易商的資本開支。

“Dealers will need to pay up front, but it may take a while to make good,” he said, adding that dealers also had to cope with a recent Supreme Court decision to allow internet sales to be taxed.

“交易商將需要預(yù)先付款，但可能需要一段時間才能做成交易，”他說。他還說，交易商還不得不應(yīng)對美國最高法院最近做出的允許對互聯(lián)網(wǎng)銷售征稅的決定。

Sotheby’s, Christie’s and the Asia Week New York association of dealers said in a written complaint that the United States, not China, would be affected most. “Imposing duties on Chinese-origin art will not impact the trade practices or policies of China, since the vast majority of such artwork is imported into the United States from countries other than China,” the complaint read.

蘇富比(Sotheby's)、佳士得(Christie's)以及紐約亞洲藝術(shù)周(Asia Week New York)交易商協(xié)會在一份書面申訴中表示，受關(guān)稅影響最大的將是美國，而不是中國。“對原產(chǎn)于中國的藝術(shù)品征收關(guān)稅，不會對中國的貿(mào)易做法或政策產(chǎn)生影響，因為這類藝術(shù)品絕大多數(shù)是從中國以外的國家進口到美國的，”申訴書寫道。

And the United States market is small compared to the amount of Chinese art and antiquities sold in mainland China. Last year, $7.1 billion worth of Chinese art and antiques were sold at auctions across the world, according to a report published this month by Artnet. Of these sales, $5.1 billion came from auctions in mainland China, where the operations of foreign auction houses are restricted; $408 million came from the United States, though that number was up 62 percent from 2016, compared with a 6 percent increase for China.

而且與中國藝術(shù)品和古董在中國大陸的銷售額相比，美國的市場規(guī)模較小。Artnet本月發(fā)布的一份報告顯示，去年，全球各地的拍賣會上銷售了價值71億美元的中國藝術(shù)品和古董。其中，51億美元的銷售來自中國大陸的拍賣，但外國拍賣行在中國大陸的運營是受限制的;另有4.08億美元的銷售來自美國，盡管這個數(shù)字與2016年的相比增長了62%，相比之下中國的增長率為6%。

Dealers have pointed out that adding a 25 percent duty to the fees known as the “buyer’s premium” could deter both buyers and sellers of Chinese art at auctions in the United States, reversing growth in that sector.

經(jīng)銷商指出，把25%關(guān)稅加入被稱為“傭金”的費用之中，會令中國藝術(shù)品的買賣雙方不敢在美國拍賣，從而阻礙該行業(yè)增長。

“It’s not punishing the Chinese; it’s punishing the Americans,” Gisèle Croës, a specialist in ancient Chinese artworks who is based in Brussels, said of the proposed tariffs. “The international trade will go back to London, Paris and Hong Kong.”

“這不是懲罰中國人;這是在懲罰美國人，”居住在布魯塞爾的中國古代藝術(shù)品專家吉塞爾·克勞斯(Gisèle Crës)談到擬議中的關(guān)稅時說。“國際交易將回到倫敦、巴黎和香港。”

In recent years, sales of the finest Chinese antiques have been dominated by Chinese dealers and collectors. The market for international contemporary art, on the other hand, is dominated by American dealers and collectors. They are also alarmed by what the impact of a proposed tariff would be on the Chinese artists they sell.

近年來，中國最精美古董的銷售一直由中國經(jīng)銷商和收藏家主導。另一方面，國際當代藝術(shù)市場由美國經(jīng)銷商和收藏家主導。對于擬議的關(guān)稅可能給他們經(jīng)銷的中國藝術(shù)家?guī)淼挠绊?，令他們感到到震驚。

“One of the strengths of the American economy has been it’s a free market for all,” said Jeffrey Deitch, a leading New York dealer and curator. “It’s made New York City the world capital of the art business. To jeopardize this situation could have very serious consequences.”

“美國經(jīng)濟的優(yōu)勢之一，就是它對所有人來說都是自由市場，”紐約重要的經(jīng)銷商兼策展人杰弗里·迪奇(Jeffrey Deitch)說。“它使得紐約市成為藝術(shù)界的世界之都。危害這種情況可能會產(chǎn)生非常嚴重的后果。“

Next month, Mr. Deitch is set to open a new gallery in Los Angeles with “Zodiac,” a museum-style exhibition of works by the Chinese artist Ai Weiwei, who currently lives in Berlin. The centerpiece of the show will be the 2013 installation “Stools,” comprising nearly 6,000 wooden seats that the artist salvaged from across China. Previously seen at the Gropius Bau in Berlin in 2014, the work is to be priced at $2.9 million.

下個月，迪奇將在洛杉磯開一家新畫廊，并推出名為“十二生肖”(Zodiac)的新展覽，以博物館的形式展出現(xiàn)居柏林的中國藝術(shù)家艾未未的作品。該展覽的核心將是2013年的裝置“凳子”，其中包括該藝術(shù)家在中國各地搶救的近6000個木制座椅。它此前曾于2014年在柏林的格羅皮烏斯博物館(Gropius Bau)展出，定價為290萬美元。

The proposed import tariff would be determined by the “location of production, not the nationality of the person creating it,” the office of the United States trade representative said in a statement emailed in response to questions. Mr. Ai’s works, having been produced in Germany, would be exempt from any penalties.

美國貿(mào)易代表辦公室在通過電子郵件回答提問時聲明，擬議的進口關(guān)稅將由“生產(chǎn)地點而非創(chuàng)作者的國籍”決定。艾未未的作品在德國制作，不會受到任何處罰。

The situation would be different, however, for works from contemporary artists with studios in China.

然而，對于在中國擁有工作室的當代藝術(shù)家的作品，情況就不同了。

The New York gallery Pace, which has branches in Hong Kong and Beijing, represents no fewer than 14 Chinese artists. On Sept. 7, its space on West 24th Street in Manhattan is to host an exhibition of 11 new works by Zhang Xiaogang, who is based in Beijing. The artist’s haunting “Bloodline” series of family portraits is much coveted by both Western and Asian collectors, with large paintings selling for as much as $12 million at auction.

紐約畫廊佩斯(Pace)在香港和北京設(shè)有分部，代表不少于14位中國藝術(shù)家。9月7日，它在位于曼哈頓西24街的空間將展出北京藝術(shù)家張曉剛的11件新作。這位藝術(shù)家令人難以忘懷的《血緣》系列家庭肖像深受西方和亞洲收藏家的青睞，其大型畫作在拍賣會上售價高達1200萬美元。

The show should open before any tariffs are imposed on imported artworks, but Marc Glimcher, the president and chief executive of Pace Gallery, is still concerned.

展覽將在對進口藝術(shù)品征收任何關(guān)稅之前開放，但佩斯畫廊的總裁兼首席執(zhí)行官馬克·格里姆徹(Marc Glimcher)仍然感到擔心。

“It’s like putting a tariff on stocks: If the price of an item is significantly altered by a tariff, the market will look elsewhere,” Mr. Glimcher said.

“這就像對股票征收關(guān)稅：如果一支股票的價格被關(guān)稅大幅改變，那么市場將會轉(zhuǎn)向其他地方，”格里姆徹說。

Purchases in New York are already subject to a local sales tax of nearly 9 percent, he said, adding, “If we had to raise the prices by 25 percent, it would be difficult to sell the show.”

他表示，在紐約的購買已經(jīng)要征收近9%的當?shù)劁N售稅，并補充說：“如果我們不得不將價格提高25%，那么這個展覽就很難推銷出去。”

“Any protection of the U.S. art market will have the opposite effect,” Mr. Glimcher continued. “It does nothing positive.”

“對美國藝術(shù)市場的任何保護都會產(chǎn)生相反的效果，”格利姆徹繼續(xù)說道。“它沒有任何積極意義。”

But the imposition of punitive import tariffs would affect more than the art market in the United States. It would also make it difficult for Chinese artists to exhibit their work, diminishing cultural exchange.

但征收懲罰性進口關(guān)稅對美國藝術(shù)市場的影響還不止于此。這也將使中國藝術(shù)家難以展出他們的作品，從而減少文化交流。

“It’s about more than the money,” said Mr. Deitch, a former director of the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles. “This is where the consensus is reached about what art is important.”

“這不僅僅是錢的問題，”曾在洛杉磯當代藝術(shù)博物館(Museum of Contemporary Art)任主管的迪奇說。“這是就重要藝術(shù)品達成共識的地方。”

“If you’re a Chinese artist,” Mr. Deitch added, “you want to show your work here, you want to be in the center of the international art discourse.”

“如果你是中國藝術(shù)家，”迪奇還說，“你就會想在這里展出你的作品，你想成為國際藝術(shù)話語的中心。”

So far, the Trump administration has gotten low marks for its concern for cultural matters. But, over the coming weeks, the art world says it will work to convince lawmakers that, if the United States wants to wage an economic war with China, taxing art would be a self-inflicted wound.

到目前為止，特朗普政府在文化事務(wù)領(lǐng)域的工作并未受到好評。但是，在接下來的幾周里，藝術(shù)界表示，他們將努力說服立法者，如果美國想與中國發(fā)生經(jīng)濟戰(zhàn)爭，對藝術(shù)征稅將是一種自我傷害。