The Artful Dodger: Han van Meegeren and Forgeries
Some of you may have come across Errol Morris’ seven part installment in the New York Times this May about Han van Meegeren, the Netherlandish man who forged Vermeers in the 1930s (scroll down to the bottom to start with part 1). His creations were so convincing that art historians rewrote the stylistic trajectory of the famous 17th century Dutch artist to accommodate these “newly discovered” paintings in the 1930s. Once van Meegeren confessed, however, the technical mastery that art experts had praised just months before was completely reversed. Like air deflating out of a balloon, the paintings were valueless, and so obviously (she says with sarcasm) poorly executed.
The topic of copying art is a fascinating one that raises many issues in regard to artistic creation, most notably that the aura of the original work of art is undeniable: it’s why a print cost less than a painting, and why Andy Warhol completely changed the art world with his factory. It also raises the important issue of the skill of the Romantic “artist-genius”: thanks to hacks like van Meegeren (and, actually, Warhol too) we declare art is not about talent, but about an idea.
If you’re interested in the topic of forgeries, I found a bunch of recent articles and news coverage related to it on MutualArt.com. Check it out.
Christ at Emmaus, Han Van Meegeren, 1937/MUSEUM BOYMANS
2 years ago | Tags: forgeries Han van Meegeren art forged art Andy Warhol
