JAKARTA - The expensive art world turns out to not always be immune from scams. A pair of New Jersey fathers and sons have pleaded guilty to selling fake paintings that claimed to be the work of Pablo Picasso, Banksy, Andy Warhol, and a number of other great artists.
Launching a report by The Guardian, Wednesday, April 30, Erwin Bankowski, 50, and his daughter, Karolina Bankowska, 26, ran a forgery scheme for years. Federal prosecutors said the two ordered at least 200 fake works to an artist in Poland.
The value of the fraud reached at least 2 million US dollars. One of the most expensive fake works is claimed to be the work of Richard Mayhew and sold through the DuMouchelles auction house last October for 160,000 US dollars.
DuMouchelles said he had been cooperating with federal authorities, but was not authorized to discuss the sale further. Other auction houses said to be targeted, including Bonhams, Phillips, Freeman's, and Antique Arena, declined to comment or did not respond to requests for comment.
In a New York court on Tuesday, the father and son apologized. They face a possible sentence of more than three years in prison, restitution of 1.9 million US dollars, and possible deportation to Poland.
Bankowska told the judge, "my actions were wrong and I am guilty". Her lawyer, Todd Spodek, said his client had put more than $1 million in the escrow account.
Erwin Bankowski also apologized through a Polish language translator. His lawyer, Jeffrey Chabrowe, said his client "deeply regrets having made a bad decision in an attempt to provide for his family".
Both are Polish citizens living in New Jersey. They face charges of conspiracy to commit electronic fraud and providing false testimony regarding the production of Native American goods. The latter charge is related to the imitation of the work of Luiseño artist Fritz Scholder.
US prosecutor Joseph Nocella Jr said the two had for years pretended to be art dealers. In fact, they "sold lies on canvas" to unsuspecting collectors.
Still according to The Guardian report, the fake works often imitate the lesser-known works of great and prolific artists. This way the paintings look plausible, not too popular, but have enough name to be auctioned for a high price.
The scheme began in 2020. Prosecutors said the father and son ordered the fake paintings from a Polish artist who was not named. They also used antique paper and fake gallery stamps. The name of the gallery used was chosen from an old gallery that had closed.
However, irregularities began to appear. In March 2023, artist representative Raimonds Staprans learned that a fake painting titled Triple Boats was sold by an auction house. A few days after the auction house was contacted, the painting was still sold for 60,000 US dollars, said the prosecutor.
Art crime expert from City University of New York, Erin Thompson, said this case is not unusual in the art market. "The only unusual thing about this case is that the forgers were caught," he said.
Thompson also found other irregularities. The gallery cap on the back of the fake Wyeth work, for example, lists the year 1976, but uses a zoning address number that has not been used since 1962.
This case shows how expensive the price of a name in the art market is. Once the label, the story of the origin, and the big name look convincing, fake paintings can even walk up to the famous auction house.
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