Course Catalog > Lectures & Walking Tours

The Art of the Con: The Most Notorious Fakes, Frauds, and Forgeries in the Art World NEW!

Art scams today are so numerous that the threat of a lawsuit arising from a mistaken attribution has scared a number of experts away from the business of authentication and forgery— and with good reason. Art forgeries are increasingly convincing, and sales involve incredible sums of money. On this evening, Anthony M. Amore, author of The Art of the Con, will share stories about some of history’s most notorious hoaxes. They involve stolen art hidden for decades; elaborate ruses that implicate the Nazis and allegedly plundered art; the theft of a famous artist’s prototype by his assistant to be used to make forgeries; the manipulation of online and television auction sites to cheat buyers out of millions; and other confidence schemes, amazing not only for their boldness—but also because they actually worked. Few of the stories can beat that of Ely Sakhai. At art auctions in the ‘90s, Sakhai began buying second-rate paintings by first-rate Impressionists. He hired a team of Chinese copyists to meticulously replicate these artworks (including the backs of the canvases and frames), and sold the forgeries with the original certificates of authenticity and auction records to a Japanese collector. Later, he had the original paintings reauthenticated, and resold them in New York. Using interviews and newly released court documents, Amore will delve into the investigations that led to the capture of these con men, who after spending time in prison, often returned to the world of art crime. Copies of The Art of the Con will be available for sale and signing.

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