Great Estates Asian Art & Antiques Auction | Steve Dong Bio
Great Estates: Asian Ceramics, Art & Artifacts
Steve Dong Bio:
The second son of Chinese immigrants, Mr. Dong was born in 1959 in Detroit, Michigan, and has spent several decades studying, collecting, and consulting on Asian Art, specifically Chinese archaic and contemporary art. Steve worked in his family’s Chinese restaurant throughout his youth. At an early age, his fascination with Chinese history, and the lack of availability of these studies in the Detroit Public School system, led him to discover local Museums and the Detroit Public Library - which would be his home away from home during his childhood. Encouraged by his family to pursue a career in computer science, in 1984 he Graduated from Wayne State University with a BA in Computer Science. The family restaurant business became Steve’s classroom into his entrepreneurial skills. In 1989, Steve accepted a position as an IT data analyst with MESC. Although these 2 disciplines left little time for Museums or Libraries, Steve found himself a regular patron of the Detroit-Chicago auctions scene. Regularly attending these events laid the basis for his gradual exit from the computer sciences restaurant arenas and entry into the world of Asian antiques and specifically Chinese art.
In 1995, Trocadero.com became the newest Antiques Art-Dealer platform on the scene and experienced explosive growth. It’s founder Livio Cillo asked Steve to join the development team.
While not planned, Steve successfully merged the 2 careers of art and computer science, at a time when e-commerce was completely altering the landscape by which collectors bought and sold merchandise. Steve spent the next 10 years working and consulting in positions with companies like Oracle, while being sought by collectors to assist in building their own collections. A strong tradition in Chinese families is that of mentorship, and the next several years brought mentors that became aligned with Steve in his exploration of the intersection between e-commerce and Asian antiquities.
In 1996, Steve founded Cicada Asian Arts and Antiquities / Baosong Art Gallery. His business partner and mentor on this journey, Mr. Zhang Baosong was invited to the USA by a Maryland Congresswoman for his renowned skills and knowledge of Chinese antiquities. Also a renowned artist, Mr. Zhang was twice recognized in the Chinese American art communities as “ Best Man in US”. Steve’s mentorship, partnership, and friendship with Mr Zhang laid the groundwork for his continued growth in the Asian Antiquities World at the precise intersection of Modern Technology. This partnership led to many years of travel between their 2 Homelands until Mr Zhang’s retirement in 2003, when he returned home to Beijing.
Today, Steve Dong runs several online antiquities research sites and works as a consultant for hire privately.
In 2004 Steve began a mentorship with Mr Kwong Lum, the owner of Gianguan Art Galleries and Auctions, Manhattan, NY and a recognized specialist in Asian Art, specifically Chinese Art. Steve’s mentorship with Mr Lum secured his path of assisting others in the collecting world with building and procuring their own collections. Mr Dong knew this was his passion.
During his mentorship with Mr. Lum, Steve was retained to serve as the sole Expert Appraiser at Asian Art table for Rochester Historical Roadshow (Michigan) and the sole Expert Appraiser at Asian Art table for Oakland County Historical Society Roadshow. (Michigan) When the mentorship (though not the friendship) with Mr. Lum ended in 2017, Steve returned to Michigan full time to settle into his career of consulting in the Asian Arts while assisting his parents into retirement.
In 2019, during the period of time when he traveled the country as a consultant, advising collectors on purchasing and selling Asian art, Mr. Jerome Watson, a prominent Detroit Attorney, asked Mr. Dong to represent him in building a collection of Asian Ceramics and Art. Mr. Watson has spent decades building his own collections varying from Theatrical art to specialty collections of African Art. When he discovered a new love for Asian Art, he knew he needed help. This partnership led to a friendship and a large collection.
Mr. Dong and Mr. Watson have decided to sell their collections through consignment to Ripley Auctions & Appraisals (Indianapolis). It remains to be seen whether in the future either of them can resist the temptations of their intense passions for acquiring Asian Art into collections!
It is with great enthusiasm that Ripley Auctions is pleased to have been selected by Mr. Watson and Mr. Dong to sell these collections that, for them, represents a lifetime of World Art Enthusiasm that they now intend to share with the next generation of collectors. Each piece was carefully curated as they sought to identify and acquire authentic Asian antiquities representing various periods of Chinese and other Asian Antiquities. In a world full of dubious copies known to fool even the most trained eyes, Mr. Dong’ s contributions to this catalog are greatly appreciated. Ripley Auctions looks forward to working with Mr. Dong again in our efforts to continue the fascinating and exciting history of this genre, delivering beautiful and historical objects to our audiences for many years to come!