He confirmed that the exhibit is now in the possession of the FBI The New York Times Museum spokesperson,
Emilia Bormas Fry
, specifying that the cultural institution is interested in the investigation only as a witness. If the paintings were original, they would be worth a hundred million dollars, according to the Putnam Fine Art and Antiques Estimation, which evaluated them on behalf of the current owners. Selling fake art knowing that, on the other hand, is a federal crime.
Investigation and suspicion –
The investigation is led by the FBI’s Art Crime team. Among the controversial points in the story is the industrial designer’s expertise,
lyndon chief
According to Federal Express, the Federal Express-branded lettering printed on one of the balls was not used until 1994, six years after the artist’s death. The leader knows this because it was he who redesigned the updated version of the brand. The works, according to the owners’ version confirmed by the Florida Museum, were created by Basquiat in 1982 during a short stay in Venice, the bohemian district of Los Angeles. The artist later sold it for five thousand dollars at the time
Thad Mumford
a television producer who died four years ago, would have held them in storage and kept them for thirty years.
In an interview with FBI agent Elizabeth Rivas prior to his death, Mumford allegedly denied buying business from Basquiat. He also said that the current owners had tried to get him to sign documents proving their authenticity “in return for 10 per cent of the proceeds”. Paintings belong to today
William Force
gallery owner, H
Lee Mangan
a commercial seller, allegedly bought it in 2012 for $15,000 after the contents of Mumford warehouse were confiscated for non-payment of rent: a scenario told by the gallery owner
Larry Gagosian
which Basquiat was a guest on in Los Angeles when the cartoon was due to be drawn, as identified by The New York Times Not very similar.
A Force and a Mangan join him later
Pierce O’Donnell
, a divorce attorney who has represented Amber Heard and Angelina Jolie among others. Basquiat is one of the most popular artists at the moment and to complicate matters, in 2012 his heirs closed the certification committee: so the exhibition was the perfect moment to confirm the still-questionable traits.
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