Art fake 'genius' gets six years
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.JOHN DREWE, the man who masterminded the biggest fraud in contemporary art this century, was jailed yesterday for six years. His accomplice, John Myatt, the artist who faked the works of leading painters using lubricating jelly and household emulsion, was sentenced to 12 months' imprisonment.
Drewe flooded the international art markets with works in the style of Alberto Giacometti, Ben Nicholson, Jean Dubuffet and Nicholas de Stael.
He went to extraordinary lengths to provide histories, or provenances, for these "non- existent" works.
The 50-year-old Drewe, who claimed he was a nuclear physicist, was found guilty last week of organising a scheme of such complexity that, over 10 years, he took in some of the country's leading galleries and art houses, including the Tate, Sotheby's and Christie's.
The scheme began when Drewe answered an advert in Private Eye magazine, which had been placed by Myatt. Having produced the paintings, Drewe set about altering the archives of a series of galleries including the Tate and the Victoria and Albert museum.
Myatt turned Queen's Evidence. The prosecution had always accepted that he was the lesser partner.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments