December 2015: Knowledge in Art and its Corruption: The Perils of Forgery and Plunder in the 21st Century

Sunday, Dec 13, 2015 at 3pm

Knowledge in Art and its Corruption: The Perils of Forgery and Plunder in the 21^st Century

Dr. Jeff Taylor

The shocking recent cases of art forgery, as well as provenance forgery in instances of archaeology, have cast into light the fragile foundations of our system of knowledge for understanding the origins and makers of the world’s most coveted art objects. This lecture illuminates the structure of how the art world agrees to know what it knows, and how contentious that proposition can be. Dr. Taylor will highlight the trajectory of major authenticity scandals from the case of the Hahn “Leonardo” to the recent German prosecution of Wolfgang Beltracchi. Furthermore, he will examine the forgery of provenance and origin which plagues the archeological world, given examples from the case of the notorious Giacomo Medici and his warehouse in the Freeport of Geneva. The lecture promises to illustrate some of the most notorious scams and how their perpetrators manipulated the foundations of knowledge to accomplish their crimes.

Unless otherwise noted Lectures are on Sundays at 3pm in Spiro Hall 2, Wagner College,
631 Howard Avenue (1 Campus Road), Grymes Hill, Staten Island, NY 10301

AIA lectures (Oct 18 & April 24) are FREE and open to all
ASSI lectures are free for ASSI and AIA members, students 22 years or younger
And Wagner Faculty and Staff – Please show ID
Others may attend ASSI lectures for a $5.00 donation or may join the ASSI at the door.

Meet the speaker over coffee and cake following each lecture
For more information write: The Archaeology Society of Staten Island P.O. Box 140504
Staten Island, NY 10314-0504