[CPProt.net] Magnifying glass, instinct best tools to unmask art fakes

[Ton Cremers]

 Magnifying glass, instinct best tools to unmask art fakes


PARIS -- Despite a barrage of sophisticated techniques, the simple magnifying glass and 
gut instinct remain the best tools for unmasking a fake Rembrandt or van Gogh, experts told 
a seminar here.

But true forgeries aimed at fooling art - lovers remain rare, the audience at the seminar held 
Wednesday and on Thursday in the Drouot auction rooms was assured.

"There are few hoaxers around, and fakes are rare," said Michel Maket, an expert in 19th 
and 20th century painting, who confessed he had once seen pass through his hands two 
identical Matisse drawings, the real one and a very good fake.

"It was the same paper, the same format, the date, but the lines weren´t quite as deft as on 
the real one," he said.

The two - day seminar, "True or False, criteria for authenticity in the art market", was 
organised by the European Confederation of Art Experts.

Accompanied by an exhibition, it aimed to answer such questions as how to distinguish a true 
masterpiece from a fake, and what is the difference between a copy, a fake and an imitation?

"Something is only a fake, if it aims to fool someone into believing it is the real thing, 
otherwise it´s just a copy," said Eric Turquin, an expert in old masterpieces.

There are "two sides to a forgery, the forger and his client" who wants to believe he is buying 
a work of art, he added.

Some of the most famous forgeries were painted by a mediocre Dutch artist, Hans van 
Meegeren, in what became one of the biggest scandals of the 20th century art world.
Van Meegeren faked six "new" paintings by Johannes Vermeer, using original 17th century 
canvases and inventing an aging process. The paintings were put on the market as new 
discoveries over a period of 10 years, until Van Meegeren was arrested in 1945 on charges 
of collabouration with Nazi Germany when he confessed to the fraud.

"At the time Vermeer was very fashionable, as Georges de la Tour is today," said Turquin. 
Van Meegeren "tried to paint what his clients wanted. The market was looking for Vermeers 
and the market supplied them."

Anyone who thinks they have stumbled on a missing masterpiece in their attic or in a car boot 
sale should be on the look - out for certain tell - tale clues which can indicate if a painting is 
authentic or not.

Turquin cited the example of an altarpiece made in the 1880s but which purported to be 15th 
century Spanish art.

The virgin was clad in a red robe, "whereas the Catholic Church at the time insisted on a blue 
one. If the picture had really been painted in the 15th century, both the painting and the artist 
would have been burnt."

But he added that the "real instrument to check out fakes, is the magnifying glass."
The background of the painting in question was white, whereas white preparations only 
became available in 1780.

He agreed though that it was rare to see fakes. "Out of 5,000 paintings, there are 1,000 
copies and 20 fakes, including works which have been over - restored." -- AFP 



http://www.timesofoman.com/newsdetails.asp?newsid=24359