Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1913-12-23

FAXED PAINTINGS.
limitations and Forgeries Of the
Works Of Old Masters.
SHARP TRICKS OF THE TRADE.
Specialists Who Arc Real Artists In
Showing Antique Effects-Ths Split
Panel Deception and an Ingenious
SwindIing Scheme That Failed.
In addition to a considerable mass Of
historical information concerning meth
DDS employed in producing pictorial
works Of art, NJ. Moreau-Vauthier's
Technique Of Painting presents much
new aud interesting matter concerning
devices Of imitation picture taking
"%truQuage," as the French art world
calls it-and systematic. deliberate,
skillful forgery that have in recent
years rendered extra hazardous the
purchase Of any picture BY a recog-
nized master who has Joined the great
majority.
Many Of these tricks require great
skill aud knowledge-enough. in all
seeming. to enable the forgers to be-
come recognized artists Of the first
class.
II an old canvas can be found-and
there IRE many thousands in Europe
the production of a Titan or Correggio
or yeronese is easy. The worthless pic
ture is painted over or cleared off Or
the latest fashion-provfded with a
new canvas face on which a fine for
gerry has been painted.
Varnish tinted with bitumen gives
appearance, Of age;licorice juice. ashes
STEPPED Yin water and lampblack are
used to initiate the dirt of time. There
are specialists in fy stains. clumsy re-
touching designed to emphasize age by
contrast. and in 'signatures-a select
class, these latter. who call themselves
monogramists.
They know the name of each great
painter. the way he signed his pictures
and the place and color used. Some
times the name is cunningly concealed
under a layer OF dirt or paint. 50 that
the buyer of this particular "oId mas
ter may have the pleasure of discover
ing it for himself.
The author gives the names of sew
eral painters who find IA ready road to
wealth in multiplying for foreign mar
kets the Rousseaus. Diazs. Corots,
Daubigneys and Courbets and the like.
without which no home Of luxury Is
deemed complete.
Unfinished studies by famous artists
sold after death ut some official vendue
bear the regular sale stamp. a price
less token of authenticity, wherefore
the clever forger makes the dimly sug-
sested picture a finished composition,
which carries On its back an indisputa.
bic certificate OF g%enuineness.
Still more ndroit is the trick played
after the FrOmentin sale. where m OF
these art hnrpies bought the painters
Arab Falconer." painted on Il wooden
panel. The panel was sawed through
edEeways. giving the forger Il genuine
Fromentin without the sale stamp and
a black panel bearing the sale stamp.
Result. two genuine" Arab Falconers,
sold far apart. with no way at hand to
dispr0ve the imitation.
Sometimes. it is pointed out, the nov
city OF the trick employed works its
own defeat. us in the case Of a Floren-
tine dealer who sold Il fare old paint
Ing to II French collector. He offered
to send it to the buyers hotel and
asked him to write his name and ad.
dress on the back of the panel in order
to remove all doubt. This was done.
but then the collector changed his
mind and carried the picture Off de-
spite the Dealers pr~otestations.
When the traveller got home he took
the picture out OF its frame to clean it.
He found that he had brought away
two pictures. The first. which he had
bought. concealed a copy. on the back
Of which be had signed his name.
This was almost perfect rascality,
IT the collector had had the picture
sent to his hotel he would have re-
ceived the copy. If he had protested
that it was not the picture be bought
he would have been shown his own
signature on the back Of the panel.
The Italian government prohibits the
expectation Of native art works except
BY permission that is very hard to. get.
But the collectors and the owners Of
old family pictures find nc difficulty in
evading this. They order copies, put
them in place Of the originals and Sc
cretly send the latter out Of the coun-
try. Thus a genuine old Italian mas
ter is one Of the easiest things to &C.
qnire in the realm OF high priced art.