Art Crime discussion

If anyone has an idea for a group read book, this is the place to post you suggestions or any ideas on how to make the group readings more interesting.

I am looking for non-fiction books for the group reads. Other books can be posted on the Art Theft In Entertainment topic found under the Fun Things folder.
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/8...

I made a list of art crime books on Goodreads listopia. Have fun voting.

http://www.goodreads.com/list/show/17...

The Buddhas of Bamiyan
The story of two Afghan sculptures, destroyed after a millennium and a half

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2012/...

Ilana, I have books that I own and need space to add more to my collection, and was wondering if you or any of the members would like to have. Here is the list: The Forger's Spell: A True Story of Vermeer, Nazis, and the Greatest Art Hoax of the Twentieth Century (1 copy), Provenance: How a Con Man and a Forger Rewrote the History of Modern Art (1 copy), The Crimes of Paris: A True Story of Murder, Theft, and Detection (2 copies), and Stealing History: Tomb Raiders, Smugglers, and the Looting of the Ancient World (2 copies). Again, this is a giveaway.

Stealing History: Tomb Raiders, Smugglers, and the Looting of the Ancient World has been on my wish list for a while. I already own the others but maybe someone else in the group would like them. Did you know goodreads has a book swap program.

I thought bookswap was closed since 2011, or at least thats what I read.

You are probably right I haven't check it in a long time.

Ilana, if you want Stealing History: Tomb Raiders, Smugglers, and the Looting of the Ancient World, just email me your address and I will send it. All Art Crime Members, if you want any of these book just email or post to let me know.

I was wondering if the club can start the polls again for the upcoming 2013 books.

I would be happy to start doing the polls again. Do you have any books you would like to read?

I have not read The Lost Painting yet, so I am not sure if its referenced as a nofiction.

never mind, The Lost Painting is nonfiction.

Thank for the suggestion Anita.

Will there be no June Book ?

Sorry been very busy forgot. Thanks for reminding me, glad someone noticed.

Its fine, I've been busy too. I'm looking forward for a summer read.

Sorry to mention, but there is no folder for The Rape of Europa: The Fate of Europe's Treasures in the Third Reich and the Second World War to make comments.

The $12 Million Stuffed Shark: The Curious Economics of Contemporary Art is an accessible, readable explanation of how the stratospheric end of the art market works. It's a better entry point than Georgina Adam's Big Bucks; you'll get more ground-level details along with the lurid bits, at the cost of looking at the world as it was a few years ago.

Don't understand contemporary art? You'll learn why it's not necessary to understand or even like it to play in this league. You'll also learn that "more money than sense" isn't just a cliché. 4.49 stars, which unfortunately doesn't round up to five.

Read the full review here.

The Art of the Con: The Most Notorious Fakes, Frauds, and Forgeries in the Art World presents a problem in rating. Do I give it four stars for its content (a panoramic rundown of a dozen interesting, recent art-based frauds)? Do I give it three stars for the bloodless prose that turns what should be fascinating stories into feature newspaper articles? Aw, screw it -- three stars, and a hope for a literary co-author next time.

Read the full review here.

The Art of the Steal is Christopher Mason's exhaustive retelling of the Sotheby's-Christie's commission-fixing scandal of the late 1990s. While obviously well-researched, at bottom it's a story of supposedly smart people doing egregiously dumb things for no especially good reason. Its greatest fault is its failure to explain why any of it matters, or why it needs its obsessive detail or dead-serious approach. Two stars, bought in.

Read the full review here.

Crime and the Art Market is a serious, solid introduction to the broad issues surrounding art-related crime, that also happens to be reasonably readable. Although it’s short (160 pages), you won’t want to try to read it on the beach, but it won’t break your brain, either. It’s not so much reportage as is it truth-seeking. Don’t come in expecting James Patterson and you won’t be disappointed. Three and a half special-exhibit tickets rounded up to four as a membership bonus.

Because I wrote this review for Criminal Element, I can't reproduce it all here. Read the complete review -- and other good stuff -- here.

False Impressions: The Hunt for Big-Time Art Fakes is a relatively painless introduction to the world of art fraud and forgery, led by a highly experienced and articulate guide. It's much more like listening to stories at a cocktail party than being in the field or the lab, and you'll learn more about the author and less about detecting forgeries than you strictly need to. Still, it's not a bad way to get started. Fourish stars.

Read the full review here.

Provenance: How a Con Man and a Forger Rewrote the History of Modern Art is the real-life story of how pathological liar John Drewe tinkered with the history of European Modern art in order to sell hundreds of forged paintings to collectors, galleries and museums. If you like con men, you'll love this book. Four stars.

Read the full review here.

Read Caveat Emptor: The Secret Life of an American Art Forger for the social history, or read it for its discussion of the art forger's craft. The author made his career as perhaps one of the most prolific (and successful) art forgers in American history -- and he never got caught. He makes his forging career sound like a romp. Don't expect this book to provide sparkling prose, moral uplift or spiritual redemption and you won't be disappointed. Four stars.

Read the full review here.

Not strictly about art crime, but in the neighborhood:

The Art Detective: Adventures of an Antiques Roadshow Appraiser is an entertaining and engaging account of real-life detective work in the rather odd world of art collecting. If you're at all interested in how we figure out whether a painting is a masterpiece or hotel art, this is a good place to start. Four and a half stars.

Read the full review here.

Science has gone boho to help answer one of the thornier questions in art: is that painting real? This is the story Dr. Jehane Ragai tells in clear, non-textbook prose in The Scientist and the Forger: Insights Into the Scientific Detection of Forgery in Paintings .

Whether you’re marking time until CSI: National Gallery comes along, or you need the latest scoop on what not to do while you’re producing your next counterfeit Picasso, you need this book. But it’s also a good pick if you’re into art crime, forensic science, or just seeing scientists doing things that fit Clarke’s third law. Five gold stars for an academic book.

Because I reviewed this book for Criminal Element, I can't copy it all here. However, you can read the entire review -- and a bunch of other good stuff -- here.

Sacred and Stolen: Confessions of a Museum Director lifts the modest skirts of the museum trade to give us a taste for the politics and sometimes shady business that goes on behind the glass cases full of (perhaps looted) shiny things. Author Gary Vikan is a personable guide through his thirty-plus years dealing with heiresses, smugglers, art dealers, thieves, crafty church officials, middlemen, local politicians and scholars, not all of whom behave well. Four strong stars and a free gallery pass.

Read the full review here.

If you like your murder mysteries genteel, spiced with exotic locales and fine art, and led by a personable young lady who knows her slice of the world and doesn't take "no" for a answer, give A Head in Cambodia: A Jenna Murphy Mystery a try. You'll learn a little, see some sights, and have a good time without the hangovers or jet lag Our Heroine suffers on our behalf. Four dancing Shivas.

Read the full review here.