Episode 79: Crime of the Century: The John Forgeries
What if your technical abilities as an artist were so good, you could bamboozle art markets and curators? What does it take? How do you get into it? Just… Asking for a friend, of course! Anyways, as a part of our summer extravaganza today Elene teaches Stephanie about the Johns—John Drewe and John Myatt, to be exact. This modern story is fun, bite-sized, and full of intense art historical implications. Join us as we follow an extravagant narrative from our favorite BYWAP host, get mad about what is within the purview of fake physics professors, contemplate the lingering effects of the Myatt art market, and enjoy this episode with a summery refreshment!
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Our music was written and recorded by Elene Kadagidze.
Our cover art was designed by Lindsey Anton-Wood.
Sources:
Moore P. (2021). Fakes, Forgeries and Value Perception. Honors Theses. 1769. https://egrove.olemiss.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2770&context=hon_thesis
Gerstenblith P. (2019). Provenances: Real, Fake, and Questionable. International Journal of Cultural Property. 26:285–304. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Patty-Gerstenblith/publication/335550326_Provenances_Real_Fake_and_Questionable/links/5e1dd77ba6fdcc28e9c701d0/Provenances-Real-Fake-and-Questionable.pdf
Carter, R. G. (2007). Tainted Archives: Art, Archives, and Authenticity. Archivaria, 63, 75-86. Retrieved from: https://archivaria.ca/index.php/archivaria/article/view/13128
Landesman P. (1999). A 20-th Century Master Scam. In The New York Times. https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/archive/19990718mag-art-forger.html
Honigsbaum M. (2005). The master forger. In The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2005/dec/08/art
Battersby M. (2014). The talented John Myatt: Forger behind the 'biggest art fraud of 20th century' on his criminal past - and how he went straight. In Independent. https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/art/features/talented-john-myatt-forger-behind-biggest-art-fraud-20th-century-his-criminal-past-and-how-he-went-straight-9889485.html
Myatt J. (n.d.). Gallery of Works. https://www.johnmyatt.com/gallery-of-works/
