Ken Perenyi

Wow. Cool. Groovy. This is a very poorly written (noun, verb, predicate) expose by a guy who thinks he is too sophisticated for words. In reality he is a lying, cheating sleaze bag of a forger. Admittedly I am fascinated with forgery and restoration/conservation, but the smug, too cool for words, name-dropping non-style of this tell-all annoyed me. (Can you tell?) This is just a catalog of petty scams interspersed with lots of drugs and alcohol. At any rate, the discussions of actual forgery techniques are decent, but the whole thing leaves you with a bad taste and a need for a bath. One can't help but wonder why such a "talented" artist didn't just paint...Oh, I know, because he made a fortune cheating and lying (not that I am all that sympathetic to private collectors or auction houses). The author explains that when he once tried to paint on his own, "it just didn't feel right." In fact, the more interesting part of the book dealt with the deceit and manipulation of the famous auction houses.… (mer)

"Caveat Emptor" is Ken Perenyi's account of his career as America's most successful art forger. It's an incredible story, hard to believe how a young and untrained artist could fool the art world so easily. And now that the FBI has closed the case and the statue of limitations has expired, Perenyi is able to tell his story.

He discusses how he got started, and subsequently how he worked from New York to Florida to London selling his fakes. The interesting thing to me is how easily he managed to pull it all off.… (mer)