“Art is the reasoned dearrangement of the senses.” ~Kenneth Rexroth

 

Left: Andy Warhol, Mao (1972), Private collection

 

Forging Ahead

BEWARE of this scam: Recently, ARTES, a fine arts magazine with a circulation of 125,000 unique monthly visitors, found itself at the receiving end of a series of emails from various Internet service “companies” located in Shanghai.  All claimed to represent different organizations in China demanding to appropriate the name ‘artesmagazine’ with the added domain suffix,.cn. They claimed it was essential for their “business model” to direct web visitors to their Chinese operation under this particular heading. The senders stated that their client “insisted” on using the ARTES name, regardless of any claim or objection at my end. The catch was that I could prevent this from happening if I would agree to buy the rights to the various China-bound suffixes, redirecting readers away from ARTES.com. The cost would be several hundred dollars a year, depending on the duration I wanted to “protect” my ARTES magazine URL. In the face of this sudden onslaught, I had a conversation with my own ARTES internet service provider, who gave me the assurance that my license was global and that this was an attempt by Chinese operatives to scam U.S. companies out of cash. artes fine arts magazine

There is a long history of deception and imitation in the art world, spanning the globe and the centuries. It is not unique to the Far East, or to the Chinese in particular. I once spotted an ‘antique’ hutch in a Vienna shop, and was directed to a Paris warehouse where I could arrange to have a similar piece shipped to the U.S. When I arrived in a non-descript industrial park north of the city, I witnessed an immense assembly line of raw-wood pieces being painted and stressed to look old. When they asked me what color I wanted, red or black, I walked out. The ability to deceive even an educated eye, and send the likes of yours truly on a wild goose chase, is as old and universal as civilization.

But, China has earned a reputation in recent years for raising the mimetic stakes on believable fakes and frauds to new levels, roping in unsuspecting buyers–whether in patented technology, designer fashion wear, or art and ancient artifacts. Perpetrators rely on the opaque Silk Curtain that isolates vast interior parts of the country, where their immense cities (ten urban areas in China’s interior are larger than New York City) provide cover for their well-orchestrated operations, keeping them undetected, and out of reach, leagally, of establishd Western businesses and bloggers. “The nation’s counterfeit industry has developed into a complete production line involving tens of millions of people. When a famous painter’s works become widely admired and sought after, a flock of forgers won’t be far behind, speedily producing fake new works. For some types of artworks and antiques, most of the counterfeiters are rural peasants… and, all of the residents of a village might be involved in making the works,” according to China Daily (April 6, 2012). Vast numbers of knock-off shops operate near the free ports of Hong Kong and Shanghai, meaning that fraudulent goods interface with eager buyers, easily finding their way into European and American markets.

Chinese forgers also prey on their own. In a recent New York Times article (10/28/13), the new luxury boom in China has breathed life into auction markets for all kinds of art, by both indigenous and Western artists. In fact, the surge in interest in Chinese art produced over many centuries has turned tables on the top ten best-selling artists in the last six years. In 2007, the auction sales records were exclusively comprised of late-19th century and 20th century Western artists, with Andy Warhol occupying the top spot. By 2012, the listing tipped in favor of Chinese artists, with five of the ten being native to China, where all have been deceased for decades, if not centuries. Chinese art is coming home to China in a wave of repatriation made possible by capitalism and its proponents on the mainland, “with more than an estimated 100 million collectors emerging in the last 20 years” (China Daily).

Western eyes have turned to Chinese artists, as well, as its investment potential and collector appreciation has been kicked up a notch…or five. High profile scandals now plague the auction houses of China, with the authenticity of many items which sold for record prices being questioned, and as a result, are unpaid-for. For example, there are far more works ascribed to the famous painter, Qi Baishi (1864-1957) in the market than he could have possibly painted in his life time, even with an assembly line of assistants—which he supposedly had, according to Arnold Chang, who ran Sotheby’s Chinese painting division for a decade. A work of his, recently fetching a record gavel price of $65.4 M, now languishes in an auction house back room, its authenticity in question.

There is good news in the art world, with precious works being discovered and brought to light in attics and consignment stores. An Amsterdam museum recently announced that it will be returning over 100 works to the heirs of Nazi-pilfered collections that subsequently landed in vaults, warehouses and even on the museum’s walls. But China, for all the excitement and recognition surrounding the work its contemporary artists, persists in manipulating every phase and corner of the art market—even aiming its sights at this modest art magazine with its growing international readership.

I’d be flattered if I weren’t so angry.

Thanks for reading,

Richard J. Friswell, Publisher & Managing Editor

www.artesmagazine.com