False Impressions: The Hunt for Big-Time Art Fakes

by Thomas Hoving

Book Overview

Delving into one of the most sacrosanct areas of culture--fine art collecting--Thomas Hoving presents a gallery of art fakes, fakers, and the suckers who fell for the scams. False Impressions from... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0684811340
• ISBN13: 9780684811345
• Release Date: May 1996
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Length: 366 Pages
• Weight: 1.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.5" x 9.6"

Customer Reviews

A good step into art

This cat definately knows the ins and outs of the art world. If for no other reason, this book is worth the money.

Interesting, but falls a little short

Thomas Hoving seems to know his art, and doesn't have any qualms about sharing his knowledge. He may be a premier fakebuster, but as a writer, he could use a little more practice. While the subject matter was interesting, Hoving had a slightly difficult time keeping my attention. He seemed to jump around alot, and made a lot of assumptions regarding my knowledge of the art world. False Impressions is filled with all kinds of interesting tidbits about the world of art forgery and fakebusting. Unfortunately, it can be somewhat difficult to separate fact from opinion. As a novice to art appreciation, I found much of the material to be "above my head". Perhaps after a few years of study, I will be in a better position to fully benefit from all Hoving offers. Probably the simplest and most effective thing he could have done to improve the book would be to include more pictures, perhaps even some color photos, and have them more logically located in the chapters in which the pieces are discussed, as opposed to having a group of plates three-quarters of the way through the book. At the very least, the text could have referenced the plate section. Unfortunately, every time a new piece is mentioned, the curious reader has to flip to the plate section and hope that the piece is represented there. Overall, I would say that if you are really interested in fine art, you will find this book enlightening. But it's not something one would read just for fun.

For as long as there has been art there has been fakery

For as long as there has been art there has been fakery. This book shows that fakery is an art form. This book also shows art through out history, from ancient Greece to the Roman Empire, from the middle ages to early Victorian Age. The New York bestselling author, Tomas Hoving, was the Director of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, if you want to see the thought process of a ¡§fake buster¡¨ or the inner workings of the Met, this book is for you. I liked it because he told the stories of fakers and fake busters throughout history. This man shows that anyone, even the best can be taken by a truly masterful fake. It is such a good read open it to any page and you will get hooked. He also shows that even well-known Artists like Renoir and Monet were known to fake there own pieces just to keep food on the table. He even has a picture section that allows you to see for your self. He will take you step by step on how to uncover a fake. Also this book shows how to prevent from being suckered by giving real life examples of when Hoving has been taken in by the charade.

Hoving strikes again!

Hoving, former director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC, knows of which he speaks. He takes you on a fascinating journey as he relates his experiences with fakes and frauds in the art world---not just paintings, but great Medieval reliquaries, ancient Greek kouros statuary, Roman antiquities, and pre-Columbian art. He leaves nothing back in his narrative-----which is really refreshing. He details "standard" museum practices of smuggling objects and even names names! And if he doesn't like someone, he doesn't hold that back either.I found the book informative, lively, and mostly fascinating. I wanted more pictures (there are only a few and none are in color)!! It was a farily easy read too---I read it in a day.If you enjoy art, art history, or even detective stories, you will enjoy this one!Stefani Koorey, Ph.D. professor of humanites, theatre, and film

Will you ever believe anything is real again?

This book is thoroughly entertaining, and makes the reader completely suspicious as to if anything they have ever seen in a museum is actually authentic. Thomas Hoving draws on his countless hours of investigation to illuminate the reader as to the frequency of fakes. Although he has occasion to assume the reader knows more about art & history than can be normally expected, he does make you want to read more on the subject. My next purchase will be " Fake?". A good read that lacks enough illustrations as to the subjects being discussd, it is equally valuable for its bibliography and end notes if nothing else.