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Art: Tracing art forgeries - 'Forged painting discussion and exhibition'
WORDS DESY NURHAYATI PHOTOS COURTESY OF PPSIMarking the launch of the book titled Jejak Lukisan Palsu Indonesia (In the Footsteps of Indonesiaâs Forged Paintings), the Indonesian Fine Art Lovers Association (PPSI) held a discussion and painting exhibition related to art forgeries
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WORDS DESY NURHAYATI PHOTOS COURTESY OF PPSI
Marking the launch of the book titled Jejak Lukisan Palsu Indonesia (In the Footsteps of Indonesia's Forged Paintings), the Indonesian Fine Art Lovers Association (PPSI) held a discussion and painting exhibition related to art forgeries.
Taking place at Setiadarma House of Masks and Puppets in Sukawati, Gianyar, the discussion focused on identifying forgeries, finding solutions and providing references for collectors to help them avoid buying forgeries.
Twenty-four paintings by S. Sudjojono, Hendra Gunawan, Soedibio and Dwi Martono were showcased in the exhibition, some of which have questionable provenance.
The exhibition also serves as an opportunity for art enthusiasts to compare side-by-side paintings of certain and unclear provenance.
The PPSI art forgery team discovered that most art forgers in Indonesia were well organized and that the majority of them resided in Java.
The book, meanwhile, targets art collectors and contains a number of articles by prominent art collectors, curators, academics and police representatives.
It contains research into the practice of forgery, articles by experts and recommendations for collectors to use in identifying forgeries.
Syakieb Sungkar, one of the book's authors, said the book offered an in-depth study of painting forgeries in Indonesia, as well as preliminary solutions on countering forgeries.
He commented that a painting should be analyzed visually in accordance with the painter's style, including colors and strokes, and that buyers should be able to ascertain a painting's provenance through sales records from previous owners of the work to learn whether it was truly the work of the claimed artist.
PPSI chairman Budi Setiadharma said that debate over the forgery of paintings by prominent Indonesian artists had surfaced over the past few years, particularly in 2012 when collector Oei Hong Djien opened the Oei Hong Djien Museum in Magelang, Central Java, only to have art enthusiasts raise questions on the provenance of his collection.
The museum houses thousands of pieces of fine art, by emerging Indonesian artists to established masters, spanning a century of work and has been the target of numerous allegations of forgery related to pieces by late maestros ' including Hendra Gunawan and S. Sudjojono ' in its collection.
