Caveat Emptor by Ken Perenyi (2012, Hardcover)

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Item specifics

Condition
Very Good: A book that has been read but is in excellent condition. No obvious damage to the cover, ...
ISBN
9781605983608
Category

About this product

Product Identifiers

Publisher
Pegasus Books
ISBN-10
1605983608
ISBN-13
9781605983608
eBay Product ID (ePID)
127420437

Product Key Features

Book Title
Caveat Emptor
Number of Pages
368 Pages
Language
English
Publication Year
2012
Topic
Hoaxes & Deceptions, American / General, Artists, Architects, Photographers
Illustrator
Yes
Genre
Art, True Crime, Biography & Autobiography
Author
Ken Perenyi
Format
Hardcover

Dimensions

Item Height
1.2 in
Item Weight
19 Oz
Item Length
9 in
Item Width
6 in

Additional Product Features

Intended Audience
Trade
Reviews
A fabulous tale of impossible events. While my encounter with Ken Perenyi was fleeting, I long suspected he would claim his place in the dark arts of illustration and the fun of the chase. Enjoy the ride., "A startling, entertaining tale, told with brio and peppered with bold-face names, and it's already been optioned for film by director Ron Howard....Caveat Emptor is getting plenty of buzz: stories in the New York Times, the Guardian and Le Figaro, radio and TV interviews for Perenyi. Not to mention that movie option.  For Perenyi, it's a love story, not a confession of guilt.  "For me, it's hard to imagine feeling guilty about creating these beautiful paintings. That has been the love of my life."", " How much is "America's first and only great art forger," as the jacket copy describes the author, willing to reveal?  Quite a lot, it seems. Perenyi, a graduate of a New Jersey technical school and a Vietnam draft dodger, fell in with a band of artistic New Yorkers and began imitating long-gone masters such as James E. Buttersworth and Martin Johnson Heade. The trick, he learned, was the peripheral details: the materials to which the canvas was fixed, the frame, a faux-aged stain. Perenyi took his canvases to New York antiques shops and specialty galleries, told a tale about a deceased uncle with treasures in his attic, and, more often than not, sold his wares. Some of his paintings reached the upper echelons of the art world and were brokered or bought by famous auction houses. "I never told them the paintings were for real," Perenyi said to his lawyers in the 1990s, when he found himself at the center of an FBI investigation. "It wasn't my fault that Christie's, Phillips, Sotheby's and Bonhams sold them." The investigation abruptly ended (the book never makes clear precisely what happened, and the FBI file was marked "exempt from public disclosure," which may explain the absence of news related to the matter). There are, of course, many morally abhorrent moments in this story but it's hard not to like this surprisingly entertaining tale of the art world's shady side. Perenyi is culpable, but he may have had some help from the dealers and auction houses that looked the other way to make a buck.   ", Perenyiillustrates how he became America's top art forger....Readers will becaptivated as they follow the development of this remarkable talent overa 40-year career., Afabulous tale of impossible events. While my encounter with KenPerenyi was fleeting, I long suspected he would claim his place in thedark arts of illustration and the fun of the chase. Enjoy the ride., "Few can match Mr. Perenyi's craftsmanship...or his checkered past. His forgeries brought him into contact with mob enforcers, the lawyer Roy Cohn, and Andy Warhol.  During the interview he hauled out a few large, blue plastic tubs and took off their lids. Inside one were stacks of tiny framed canvases in the style of the 18th-century view painter Francesco Guardi, a rival of Canaletto and Pannini. Hundreds of other paintings Mr. Perenyi has produced are stockpiled in secure storage units nearby, he said. Spreading half a dozen of his Guardi replicas across the living room floor, Mr. Perenyi said he developed his artistic technique on his own and learned the forensics by working for a restorer and a frame maker when he was in his 20s. Through extensive research and trial and error, he figured out how to simulate the telltale signs of age: the distinctive spider-web cracking in the paint, the tiny dots of fly droppings, and the slimy green look of old varnish when viewed under ultraviolet light. One of his best, he says, was a Heade-style passion flower that Sothebys sold as a new discovery in 1994 for $717,500. A copy now hangs over his fireplace. Today Mr. Perenyi sees himself as a spiritual heir to the artists he copies."I'm convinced that if these artists were alive today, they would thank me," he said. "I'm somebody that understands and appreciates their work."", When the flea-market find of a possible Renoir hit the news, my first thought was: Pierre-Auguste Renoir? Or Ken Perenyi? I had just that morning come to the end of Perenyi's fascinating memoir, Caveat Emptor: The Secret Life of an American Art Forger (Pegasus Books), and my thoughts about art, the art market, and confidence games had been perfectly scrambled. Now I wasn't sure which made for a better fantasy: that the mystery painting was a long lost Renoir bought for seven bucks, or a newly-found Perenyi that would sell for more than $70,000. But one thing was certain; to capture the attention of the art world as it has, the painting must be remarkable. And so, too, is Caveat Emptor. Perenyi's confessions of his confidence game and remarkable art career make for a captivating read. Yet as I reached the end...I was left disappointed -- but less because he didn't apologize and promise he was reformed, but more because the book was over. I wanted to read more, to learn more, and to spend more time inside the puzzling mind of such an astounding artist. As Perenyi's title suggests, let the buyer beware. And as the glowing reviews suggest, if you have an interest in art, read Caveat Emptor to discover just how utterly strange, surreal and susceptible is the art world that brought us Renoir and, like it or not, Ken Perenyi. Chances are you'll like it., This week I've been absolutely immersed in Ken Perenyi's new memoir, Caveat Emptor: The Secret Life of an American Art Forger (Pegasus). The story is so crazy I can't believe he didn't tell it sooner: For decades the New Jersey native made a very good living forging valuable paintings. In his book, he reveals exactly how he did it...it's a must-read., "How much is "America's first and only great art forger," as the jacket copy describes the author, willing to reveal? Quite a lot, it seems. Perenyi, a graduate of a New Jersey technical school and a Vietnam draft dodger, fell in with a band of artistic New Yorkers and began imitating long-gone masters such as James E. Buttersworth and Martin Johnson Heade. The trick, he learned, was the peripheral details: the materials to which the canvas was fixed, the frame, a faux-aged stain. Perenyi took his canvases to New York antiques shops and specialty galleries, told a tale about a deceased uncle with treasures in his attic, and, more often than not, sold his wares. Some of his paintings reached the upper echelons of the art world and were brokered or bought by famous auction houses."I never told them the paintings were for real," Perenyi said to his lawyers in the 1990s, when he found himself at the center of an FBI investigation. "It wasn't my fault that Christie's, Phillips, Sotheby's and Bonhams sold them." The investigation abruptly ended (the book never makes clear precisely what happened, and the FBI file was marked "exempt from public disclosure," which may explain the absence of news related to the matter). There are, of course, many morally abhorrent moments in this story but it's hard not to like this surprisingly entertaining tale of the art world's shady side. Perenyi is culpable, but he may have had some help from the dealers and auction houses that looked the other way to make a buck. ", "Ken Perenyi made millions painting and selling more than 1,000 forgeries over 30 years. He's imitated the likes of Charles Bird King and James Buttersworth -- and confesses it all in his new book, Caveat Emptor: The Secret Life of an American Art Forger." Interview with Ken Perenyi on NPR.", Anextraordinary memoir is to reveal how a gifted artist managed to forgehis way to riches by conning high-profile auctioneers, dealers andcollectors over four decades., A fabulous tale of impossible events.  While my encounter with Ken Perenyi was fleeting, I long suspected he would claim his place in the dark arts of illustration and the fun of the chase. Enjoy the ride., An extraordinary memoir is to reveal how a gifted artist managed to forge his way to riches by conning high-profile auctioneers, dealers and collectors over four decades., "How much is "America's first and only great art forger," as the jacket copy describes the author, willing to reveal?  Quite a lot, it seems. Perenyi, a graduate of a New Jersey technical school and a Vietnam draft dodger, fell in with a band of artistic New Yorkers and began imitating long-gone masters such as James E. Buttersworth and Martin Johnson Heade. The trick, he learned, was the peripheral details: the materials to which the canvas was fixed, the frame, a faux-aged stain. Perenyi took his canvases to New York antiques shops and specialty galleries, told a tale about a deceased uncle with treasures in his attic, and, more often than not, sold his wares. Some of his paintings reached the upper echelons of the art world and were brokered or bought by famous auction houses."I never told them the paintings were for real," Perenyi said to his lawyers in the 1990s, when he found himself at the center of an FBI investigation. "It wasn't my fault that Christie's, Phillips, Sotheby's and Bonhams sold them." The investigation abruptly ended (the book never makes clear precisely what happened, and the FBI file was marked "exempt from public disclosure," which may explain the absence of news related to the matter). There are, of course, many morally abhorrent moments in this story but it's hard not to like this surprisingly entertaining tale of the art world's shady side. Perenyi is culpable, but he may have had some help from the dealers and auction houses that looked the other way to make a buck. ", By his own admission, Ken Perenyi is a liar, a cheat and a thief--but to give him his due, he is also pretty brilliant. His astonishing memoir, Caveat Emptor, is by turns horrifying and hilarious. An engrossing read., As Perenyi's exploits grow in value and range, the threat of being caught rises and the FBI draws near., Perenyi illustrates how he became America's top art forger....Readers will be captivated as they follow the development of this remarkable talent over a 40-year career.
Synopsis
It is said that the greatest art forger in the world is the one who has never been caught--the astonishing story of America's most accomplished art forger., Ten years ago, an FBI investigation in conjunction with the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Southern District of New York was about to expose a scandal in the art world that would have been front-page news in New York and London. After a trail of fake paintings of astonishing quality led federal agents to art dealers, renowned experts, and the major auction houses, the investigation inexplicably ended, despite an abundance of evidence collected. The case was closed and the FBI file was marked "exempt from public disclosure." Now that the statute of limitations on these crimes has expired and the case appears hermetically sealed shut by the FBI, this book, Caveat Emptor , is Ken Perenyi's confession. It is the story, in detail, of how he pulled it all off. Glamorous stories of art-world scandal have always captured the public imagination. However, not since Clifford Irving's 1969 bestselling Fake has there been a story at all like this one. Caveat Emptor is unique in that it is the first and only book by and about America's first and only great art forger. And unlike other forgers, Perenyi produced no paper trail, no fake provenance whatsoever; he let the paintings speak for themselves. And that they did, routinely mesmerizing the experts in mere seconds. In the tradition of Frank Abagnale's Catch Me If You Can , and certain to be a bombshell for the major international auction houses and galleries, here is the story of America's greatest art forger., Featured?on?CBS SUNDAY MORNING and?NBC's TODAY For over thirty years, Ken Perenyi raked in riches by forging masterpieces, convincing even the most discerning experts that his works were authentic. Growing up as a working-class kid in Fort Lee, New Jersey, Perenyi never dreamed of becoming an art forger. However, when he stumbled upon The Castle, a large crumbling estate in his neighborhood, he found himself in the middle of the New York avant-garde art scene. Under their mentorship, he discovered he possessed a preternatural ability to imitate the works of old masters, an ability that confounded even the most qualified experts and catapulted him to a life of riches. Honest, gripping, and astounding,?Caveat Emptor?reveals the ironies latent to the art world, while telling the dramatic story of how Perenyi managed to pull it off.
LC Classification Number
N8791

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I have worked in the auction & antiques business for over 40 years. While I am retired now, I still like to buy and sell to keep myself in the game. I always try and put the customer first and deliver ...
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