Something Happened On The Way Back to Church … A Finger Went Missing!
Gian Lorenzo Bernini’s marble statue depicting Saint Bibiana (1626) was recently restored and then loaned to the Borghese Gallery for an exhibition of the artist’s masterpieces. Upon its return to Santa Bibiana, and while being placed back above the altar, the … More…
Ezra Chowaiki Pleads Guilty – More Art World Greed!
The end has come! Manhattan art dealer, Ezra Chowaiki, pleaded guilty to fraud charges and is facing up to 20 years in prison … though it seems that prosecutors will recommend a term of 4 to 5 years. He also agreed … More…
You Cannot Sell The Basquiat … Oh, Yeah? We’ll See About That
A 12 x 12 foot Basquiat painting is at the center of a bitter family dispute. It seems that Dolores Neumann changed her will (on her death-bed) and gave a controlling interest (80%) in Basquiat’s Flesh and Spirit (valued at … More…
Turning Your Christopher Wool Into A Lucio Fontana
It seems that Nicholas Morley, son of art collector Harold Morley, decided to alter the look and value of one of his father’s paintings. Harold consigned a Christopher Wool painting (valued at $2.95M) to Opera Gallery in Aspen, Colorado. On … More…
Even More Drama At The Upper Levels
Just the other day we got wind of a lawsuit that Steve Tananbaum has brought against Gagosian Gallery and Jeff Koons; now it seems there is another unhappy collector. Joel Silver (movie producer) filed papers in Manhattan Supreme Court stating … More…
The Da Vinci Effect … A No Show?
Earlier this month, Christie’s held their Old Masters sale in New York and though the sale as a whole had a decent showing and there were a few bright spots, by most standards the sale under-performed… in the lead-up, much was … More…
Shocking … More Than Half Are No Good!
I am blown away by this one. According to recent reports, more than half of the paintings in the Terrus Museum, a state-owned French museum in Elne, are fake. Now, maybe I could understand if one or two forgeries slipped … More…
The 19th Century Middle East – Hot, Hot Hot!
This week Sotheby’s presented a small selection of 19th century Orientalist works, and the results were impressive. Taking the top spot was Edwin Lord Weeks’s Rabat (The Red Gate) which brought £573K ($799K – est. £200-300K). In second was Paul … More…
Comments on the Art Market – Volume 209
We just released Volume 209 of our Comments on the Art Market. In this issue, we cover The Art Market, Tales from the Dark Side, Really (Russell Crowe and some expensive Doors), Stocks, and the upcoming Chicago Show. Your … More…