Sunday 19 May 2019

How to go about spotting a forgery?

I purchased a painting on the weekend. The tag was titled "Yue Minjin and the Symbolic Smile". I love Yue Minjin and seen his work in Singapore and Berlin (Tim Raue and I are one degree separated by shared love of an artist).
I did not pay market value for a real Minjin work, so I am presuming it is someone's HSC effort though it is a good copy. I don't really care, it makes me smile. The vendor wouldn't give me an email for the person who sold it, nor did they have any details about the painting.

I want to get it reframed as the frame is chipped. If it is a real Minjin, I might invest a little more in the frame and get a framer to do it so I don't damage* it. If it's a knock off, I'll just IKEA it myself.

But how do I find out? Does anyone know? Is there a catalogue of Minjin's work?

*I dropped my phone unknowingly and it bounced under my car and spent an hour lying on Parramatta Road. Amazingly it was still there when I retraced my steps. My degree of clumsiness and ability to damage things is at a level you may not have comprehended before....

So what I am loving this week is that smile. Every time I walk past it I involuntarily smile back. I am also loving that I didn't destroy my phone just four days after upgrading. For those that follow my ranty hashtag #Ihatemyphone, I still hate it - all the problems appear to have transfered to the new handset - and the camera is not that good as I didn't get the latest one. However the battery is working for now so that is an improvement.

What are you loving this week?



6 comments:

  1. I love that smile - and I have no idea how to spot forgeries - but real or not I love that smile.

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  2. Love that smile too! I think I need a print stuck on my fridge to keep me sane in the mad morning rush!

    SSG xxx

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  3. I have no idea how to spot forgeries or know if it's an original and I'm not sure who you'd turn to. If it were me, I'd be consulting Mr Google and hope he could point me in the right direction! I'd never heard of that artist! #TeamLovinLife

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  4. I love that smile too so thanks for putting a smile on our faces as well. Have a great week! #lovinlifelinky

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  5. Thanks for sharing that smile with us. Perhaps check the artist's web site to see if he's numbered his work or check the painting to see if there is any signature or number on it. Glad to hear you didn't lose your phone.

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  6. Oh Lydia, you made me smile...and cringe..losing your phone like that..lucky you got it back. I think these days what makes us smile is to be treasured. Fake or not.
    Enjoy!
    Denyse x

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