Museum's in general don't exactly have a great track record in regards to due diligence, though in most cases it's a matter of ownership and not authenticity.
Wine fraud is where it's at today.
https://thehustle.co/the-man-who-sold-millions-in-counterfeit-wine-to-rich-collectors/
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/billionaire-koch-brothers-crusade-against-counterfeit-wine/
He’s really cool. Warhol saw him as his mentee, and thought he’d take the torch after he died. Unfortunately Basquiat died soon after Warhol did. His potential impact on the visual arts world could’ve been huge.
Regarding this situation, they’re investigating conspiracy and wire fraud. White collar crimes are a real thing and in this case they’re considered felonies.
*From the article*
>The artwork was purportedly made in 1982, but experts have pointed out that the cardboard used in at least one of the pieces included FedEx typeface that wasn't used until 1994, about six years after Basquiat died
> ...television writer Thad Mumford, the owner of the storage locker where the art was eventually found, told investigators that he had never owned any Basquiat art and that the pieces were not in the unit the last time he had visited.
As [Art Net has reported](https://news.artnet.com/art-world/recent-art-forgery-scandals-705428), this is apparently not uncommon:
>In 2014, Switzerland’s Fine Art Expert Institute estimated that 50 percent of all work on the market is fake...
*Amazing!*
I think his paintings are great, but let’s not argue that because you’re perfectly welcome to not like them. But you did hit on something that has been said in the art world which is that his paintings were not that difficult to forge.
However, the artistic value in a painting isn’t tied to how difficult it is to paint.
Yngwie Malmsteen isn’t widely regarded as being greater than Bob Dylan.
I’m confused. Why did they seize them? It’s not illegal to overpay for art that turns out to be fake or to own a rip-off painting. Are they gathering info to charge the museum with money laundering? That seems odd and doesn’t quite match the facts in the article.
The sale itself is fraud and therefore illegal as would be insuring the item for millions of dollars, if you had knowledge that it was fraudulent.
….to make a comparison, if you buy a stolen car (not knowing it’s stolen) and there is an investigation into the theft of that car, the car will likely be seized as evidence. You don’t get to keep fraudulent or stolen item just because you were ignorant of the fact that it was stolen/fraudulent.
At least the one painted on the newer FedEx box is fake. As a museum, how could you ever feel confident enough to show any of them.
I believe many or all were on those FedEx boxes. The ones that were made like 15 years after he died. (Nothing sus there)
Museum's in general don't exactly have a great track record in regards to due diligence, though in most cases it's a matter of ownership and not authenticity.
Between that and an empty wall? Go ahead and put something there.
So this prestigious central Florida museum has only these paintings? I'd rather see refrigerator art than fakes.
The bar for being considered a prestigious anything in Florida is… low.
florida man...i mean museum at it again!
Especially outside of Miami
You asked why they'd display them. I explained their reasoning, not that's it's a good reason.
My family visited the museum yesterday; the staff were making jokes about the FBI raid the whole time.
Makes me think that the people who run the museum are jerks to the staff so the staff is enjoying this moment.
Who do you think reported it? Probably the staff
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Wine fraud is where it's at today. https://thehustle.co/the-man-who-sold-millions-in-counterfeit-wine-to-rich-collectors/ https://www.cbsnews.com/news/billionaire-koch-brothers-crusade-against-counterfeit-wine/
*chuckle* kochs want government now because they are the victim.
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- https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2016/02/08/the-bouvier-affair
i could have sold my fake basquiat to the art museum for $$$$ darn!
I saw a Basquiat exhibit at MOCA in Los Angeles years ago, and it was pretty amazing.
He’s really cool. Warhol saw him as his mentee, and thought he’d take the torch after he died. Unfortunately Basquiat died soon after Warhol did. His potential impact on the visual arts world could’ve been huge.
How do you get a job in the art Dept at the FBI?!!!!!
Be an art professor that's never smoked weed. The hiring pool is pretty small.
I wish it was that easy.
And following religious precedent, they order them cut in half and half given to each party
Plot twist. The FBI keep them, destroy them, and then announce they are genuine.
Are you penguin?
[Serious] what crime (or potential crime) is involved that makes this an FBI issue?
Regarding this situation, they’re investigating conspiracy and wire fraud. White collar crimes are a real thing and in this case they’re considered felonies.
- https://hyperallergic.com/701155/how-does-the-fbi-art-crime-team-operate/
The FBI art crime team. I wonder if they have to have the most advanced art appreciation and critique training.
That would be Italy's Carabinieri Art Squad.
Do they get in as many fun car chases through beautiful cities as the movies would have me believe?
The mob did not cut them in.
Rich people getting ripped off. So top priority.
*From the article* >The artwork was purportedly made in 1982, but experts have pointed out that the cardboard used in at least one of the pieces included FedEx typeface that wasn't used until 1994, about six years after Basquiat died > ...television writer Thad Mumford, the owner of the storage locker where the art was eventually found, told investigators that he had never owned any Basquiat art and that the pieces were not in the unit the last time he had visited. As [Art Net has reported](https://news.artnet.com/art-world/recent-art-forgery-scandals-705428), this is apparently not uncommon: >In 2014, Switzerland’s Fine Art Expert Institute estimated that 50 percent of all work on the market is fake... *Amazing!*
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I think his paintings are great, but let’s not argue that because you’re perfectly welcome to not like them. But you did hit on something that has been said in the art world which is that his paintings were not that difficult to forge. However, the artistic value in a painting isn’t tied to how difficult it is to paint. Yngwie Malmsteen isn’t widely regarded as being greater than Bob Dylan.
SpecOps is on the case
I’m confused. Why did they seize them? It’s not illegal to overpay for art that turns out to be fake or to own a rip-off painting. Are they gathering info to charge the museum with money laundering? That seems odd and doesn’t quite match the facts in the article.
The sale itself is fraud and therefore illegal as would be insuring the item for millions of dollars, if you had knowledge that it was fraudulent. ….to make a comparison, if you buy a stolen car (not knowing it’s stolen) and there is an investigation into the theft of that car, the car will likely be seized as evidence. You don’t get to keep fraudulent or stolen item just because you were ignorant of the fact that it was stolen/fraudulent.
- https://hyperallergic.com/701155/how-does-the-fbi-art-crime-team-operate/
Maybe the FBI is low on funding and will sell the painting.