FAKE! 53 Works & they’re all fake! And there are probably more …

In an online only article the Art Newspaper published a list of 53 works fabricated by master forger Wolfgang Beltracchi and his gang that were sold to unsuspecting buyers.  Beltracchi was found guilty of forgery and sentenced to six years in prison, with members of his crew — including his wife — getting lesser sentences.  Here’s a more extensive Art Newspaper article about the extent of the forgeries, its impact on the market and the forgers themselves.

The fake Alfred Flechtheim label printed in the Impressionist and Modern Art Evening Sale 19 June 2007 catalogue as proof of provenance of Andre Derain’s Bateaux a Collioure, around 1905

Here’s the complete list:

1. Campendonk, Heinrich; Mädchen mit Schwan (Girl with Swan)

Heinrich Campendonk, Landschaft mit Pferden (Landscape with Horses), 1915. Sold to the American actor Steve Martin in 2004 for $850,000 by a Parisian gallery. In 2005 the painting was auctioned by Christie’s for €500,000.

2. Campendonk, Heinrich; Kleines Bild mit Pferden (Landscape with Horses)

Heinrich Campendonk, Rotes Bild mit Pferden (Red Painting with Horses), 1914. Sold by the German auction house Lempertz in 2006 for €2.9m (a record for the artist) to the Malta-based company Trasteco Ltd.

3. Campendonk, Heinrich; Rotes Bild mit Pferden (Red painting with Horses)

4. Derain, Andre Collioure (Collioure)

5. Ernst, Max; Waldbild (Forest Painting)

6. Ernst, Max; Kleine Weisse Landschaft (Small White Landscape)

7. Friesz, Emil Othon; La Ciotat (La Ciotat)

8. Herbin, Auguste; Kubistisches Frauenbild (Femme Assise)

9. Kisling, Moishe; Blumenbild 1 (Flower painting 1)

10. Kisling, Moishe; Blumenbild 2 (Flower painting 2)

11. Loiseau, Gustav; Kleines Winterbild Paris (Small Winter painting Paris)

12. Marcoussis, Louis; Kleines Cubistisches Stilleben (Small Cubist Still-Life)

13. Leger, Fernand; Kubistisches Stilleben (Cubist Still-Life)

14. Mense, Carlo; Kleine Ansicht Waidmarkt — (Small view of the Waidmarkt)

15. Pechstein, Max; Frauenakt (Nude Woman)

16. Pechstein, Max Seine Paris (Seine, Paris)

17. Purrmann, Hans; Sudliche Landschafte (Southern Landscape)

18. Metzinger, Jean; Cycliste (oval)

19. Ernst, Max; La Horde

20. Dongen, Kees van; Frauenportrait mit Hut (Portrait of Woman with Hat)

21. Dufy, Raoul; Le Havre

22. Marcoussis, Louis; Portrait d’Alfred Flechtheim

23. Gleizes, Albert

24. Derain, Andre; Boote in Collioure (Boats in Collioure)

25. Ernst, Max; La Mer

26. Ernst, Max; Tremblement de Terre

27. Campendonk, Heinrich; Else Laske-Schule Gewidmet (Dedicated to Else Laske-Schule)

28. Nauen, Heinrich; Herbstwald (Autumn Forest)

29. Campendonk, Heinrich; Zwei Figuren in Landschaft (Two Figures in Landscape)

30. Metzinger, Jean; Cubistisches Frauenbild (Cubist Painting of Women)

31. Hayden, Henry; Stilleben 1921 (Still-life 1921)

32. Ernst, Max; Oiseaux

33. Herbin, Auguste; Hafenbild (Harbour Painting)

34. Ernst, Max; La Foret

35. Metzinger, Jean; Le Cycliste

36. Ernst, Max; Vogel in Winterlandschaft (Bird in Winter Landscape)

37. Campendonk, Heinrich; Liegender Akt mit Frosch (Reclining Nude with Frog)

38. Lhote, Andre; Course Cycliste a Bordeaux

39. Derain, Andre; Matisse Peignant

40. Dufy, Raoul; Gebaude im Wald (Building in a Forest), (not original title)

41. Butler, Theodore Karl; River Epte, Giverny

42. Braques, Georges; Guitare le Compotier

43. Braques, Georges; Souvenirs d’Anvers

44. Friesz, Emil Othon; Port d’Anvers

45. Macke, August; Hafenbild (Harbour Painting)

46. Campendonk, Heinrich; Katze in Berglandschaft (Cat in Mountain Landscape)

47. Moll, Oskar; Stilleben mit Fruchteschale (Still life with Fruit Bowl)

48. Marcoussis, Louis; Stilleben Composition Cubiste (14th July) (Still-life Cubist Composition)

49. Marcoussis, Louis; Kleines Cubistisches Stilleben (Small Cubist Still-life), Paris

50. Herbin, Auguste; Femmes et Enfants

51. Filla Emil; Homme et Oiseaux

52. Herbin, Auguste; Rue de Village

53. Hayden, Henry; Nature Morte a la Guitare

Here are images of some of his high quality forgeries.