| Think art fraud is only for the high-end, rarified air of | | | | of fraud is so huge that much of his work on paper |
| museums and private collections? It only affects the | | | | is considered suspect. |
| rich, right? Think again. Where there's money, there | | | | Is Dali the only one? Of course not. Picasso wasn't an |
| are scammers. Schemes and fakes have been part | | | | art saint either, but the shenanigans during his lifetime |
| of art throughout its history. Because demand can | | | | have likely been cleared away, and the catalog of his |
| exceed the supply of rare things, the majority of | | | | true work is dependable. That catalog, however, |
| ancient Greek sculpture sold in slightly-less-ancient | | | | doesn't stop shady dealers from producing bogus |
| Rome were fakes and of the 400 paintings by | | | | works. The top four faked artists, Dali, Picasso, Miro, |
| Camille Corot, 3000 are in America.* As the price of | | | | and Chagall, are still sold to the unwary with lovely, |
| art skyrocketed in the 20th century, as technology | | | | but meaningless, certificates of authenticity for |
| advanced, and as the American middle class grew | | | | thousands of dollars. Rembrandt and Durer etchings |
| strong and blossomed into art buyers, the art | | | | are fraudulently reproduced also. The image may be |
| schemers found new ways to run an old con and a | | | | the artist's, but the metal etching plate is new, made |
| new audience to run it on. | | | | from a photo of some reproduction of the image, |
| In this article, I'll go over the first of three distinct | | | | and the paper is new. It's little more than a poster |
| areas in which great profits have been made by | | | | and it's value is not over $100 - certainly not the |
| being less than forthcoming with the facts in the art | | | | $5000 these things are known to sell for. |
| world. The three are: the name everyone knows, the | | | | Rembrandt, Picasso, Dali are the household names of |
| new process, and outsourcing the time-tested image. | | | | art. We have been repeatedly assured by museums |
| The Name Everyone Knows | | | | and art experts that their artwork is top quality. The |
| Salvador Dali marketed himself very well, and both | | | | names alone are an amazing sales tool. The idea of |
| the man and his art were readily recognized during his | | | | getting a Rembrandt etching for $5000 may even |
| lifetime. Since his death in 1989, his celebrity has only | | | | strike us as quite a deal - and, if it weren't a fake, it |
| increased. | | | | certainly would be. But if we ask ourselves how |
| In the space of two weeks, two separate clients | | | | many original Rembrandt etchings there would have |
| came to our gallery, each with a Salvador Dali etching | | | | to be in order for this fancy dealer to move from |
| of Don Quixote. Each framed image had a Certificate | | | | group to group around the country or the high seas |
| of Authenticity glued to the back.The etching | | | | selling the image again and again, the story of its |
| process, part of the larger art field called printmaking, | | | | rarity becomes questionable. The numbers just don't |
| was adapted from the craft of armor making in the | | | | work out - at least not favor of legitimacy. |
| 1400's, and it is intended to produce an edition | | | | What to do? First recommendation, buy from a |
| (several of the same image), all of which are | | | | dealer or gallery that you know, that's been around |
| considered originals. So the Dali's sound fine. Right? | | | | for several years, and has a good reputation. Second |
| The missing detail: these two images were identical in | | | | recommendation, buy from living artists - while being |
| every aspect, except one. They were slightly | | | | wary of those with huge marketing campaigns. Rare |
| different sizes. Either one or both were fakes. I | | | | is the artist who can supply 5 galleries with original |
| found several etchings of these very same etchings | | | | work, much less 500 galleries (but that's the next |
| on the web today for around $500. Dali, himself, was | | | | article). That $5000 for a "Rembrandt" etching could |
| perhaps the biggest forger of Dali's. He was caught | | | | just as well buy a genuine, honest-to-goodness, |
| selling blank paper with his signature on it, and he is | | | | one-of-a-kind, well-done painting that you could |
| quoted as saying that if Dali made money from it, it's | | | | always feel good about owning and your kids and |
| a Dali. The International Foundation for Art Research | | | | grandkids could fight over when you're gone. |
| says, "The extent of Dali's own involvement in the | | | | * The numbers change every time I see reference |
| production of prints bearing his name is highly | | | | to the over-production of Corot-like paintings. But |
| problematic." Not good. Add unscrupulous dealers | | | | you get the idea. |
| willing to contribute to the confusion and Dali's legacy | | | | |