Disclaimer
The opinions expressed herein are my own personal opinions and do not represent anyone else's view in any way, including those of my employer.
© Copyright 2009
The opinions expressed herein are my own personal opinions and do not represent anyone else's view in any way, including those of my employer.
© Copyright 2009
"F for FAKE" is a film hosted by Orson Wells (Ovation Cable programing January 2009) on the career of the infamous El Mir, the peerless counterfeiter of great artists’ paintings. In the film, El Mir questioned the "expertise of the experts" since time after time no "expert" could tell the authentic from the El Mir.
FACT: One of the early forgers of artistic works was, Michelangelo himself. Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni[1] (March 6, 1475 – February 18, 1564), commonly known as Michelangelo, was an Italian Renaissance painter, sculptor, architect, poet and engineer. (Wikipedia)
| Quotes on Michaelangelo |
| “He also copied drawings of the old masters so perfectly that his copies could not be distinguished from the originals, since he smoked and tinted the paper to give it an appearance of age. He was often able to keep the originals and return the copies in their stead.” |
|
Vasari on Michaelangelo |
| “It is well known that as a young man, the master [Michelangelo] in addition to faking drawings, carved a Sleeping Cupid in the manner of the antique. This was given the patina of age and sold with Michelangelo’s full knowledge and consent to a cardinal in Rome as an antiquity for a hundred ducats, whereas before, as a Michelangelo, it had been worth only thirty.” |
| Hebborn: The Art Forger’s Handbook, p. 336. |
THE PROBLEM WITH FAKES: Collectors and museum personnel have mutual interests in identifying fakes and misrepresentations. Have any of you had experiences that you would like to share with others in an exchange of information of these topics? How do fakes affect authentic artifacts? Do fakes influence the monetary value of an entire field? How can fakes be detected? These problems are not recent. They have been going on for hundreds of years in all aspects of life – from currency to designer goods to antiques.
For example, when a significant number of fake Oscar Peterson fish decoys entered the collecting community quite a number of years ago, collector confidence in the veracity of all vintage fish decoys was shaken. Prices plummeted. Various people lost significant amounts of money. Criminal fraud was perpetrated. As a result, it has taken years for the field to begin recovering. How can real Oscar Peterson fish decoys be differentiated from fakes?
How can fakes or misrepresentations be identified?
In your experience, how dangerous are fakes?
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