SUCCESSFUL ARTIST: Rupert Hoogewerf (left), founder of the Hurun Report Inc., awards 58-year-old oil painter Wang Yidong, 26th rank on the Hurun Art List 2013 on April 24 (COURTESY OF HURUN REPORT)

The Hurun Research Institute on April 24 published  the 2012 edition of its top-100 ranking of artists by public auction sales.

Zhou Chunya, 58, is the youngest artist to top the list with a record-breaking $75 million in sales.

The value of Zhou's work has more than doubled from last year when he ranked eighth. He has been in the top 10 since 2008 and his works have gained value dramatically over subsequent years according to the Hurun Report, best known for its annual Hurun China Rich List.

Oil painter Zeng Fangzhi came in second with $73 million in sales and is the youngest artist to enter the top 30. Zeng has remained in the top 10 since 2008 and has seen the value of his work increase by 96 percent in three years.

Renowned Chinese ink painter and calligrapher Fan Zeng, 75, took third place with $69 million. Fan, who took top spot last year, has seen the value of his work at auction this year fall by half.

"The Hurun Art List provides a starting point for the Chinese would-be art collector, who has been focused up to this point on earning money rather than spending it [sic]," said Hurun Report Chairman and Chief Researcher Rupert Hoogewerf.

The total turnover of the top 100 artists' works registered $1.2 billion, falling by 21 percent compared to last year. The threshold for artists making the top 100 fell 11 percent from last year to $2.4 million.

The average age of artists is 66, three years older than that of last year. The youngest is 37-year-old Chinese ink painter and calligrapher Ren Zhong, whose work ranked 51st with $7 million in sales in 2012.

Five of the artists listed are over the age of 90, the oldest being 95-year-old Chinese ink painter and calligrapher Rao Zongyi who ranked three places lower at 54th with $5.9 million.

There are 28 new artists added to the list this year.

The list also includes six female artists, more than any previous year, including 91-year-old Chen Peiqiu who has an annual turnover of $22.4 million last year and is ranked 11th.

 There are three new female painters added to the list, with Lou Zhenggang ranking 77th, Jiang Meiyan ranking 74th and Qi Liangzhi 63rd.

Zhu Dequn's 1987 piece White Forest was the most expensive work auctioned last year in Christie's Hong Kong for $7.8 million.

The list expanded to 100 artists in 2012.

Established as a research unit in 1999 by British accountant Rupert Hoogewerf, Hurun Report Inc. has grown into a leading luxury publishing group based in Shanghai, China. Hurun Report Inc. includes four luxury magazines, the Hurun Research Institute and an active business events division targeting China's entrepreneurs and individuals of high net worth. 

The flagship Hurun Report magazine is published monthly and reaches the households of 112,000 proven wealthy Chinese individuals and their advisers. Hurun Report is best known for its annual Hurun China Rich List, widely considered the Bible of wealth and an acknowledged who's who of Chinese business.