van gogh

Yale Sued by Former Van Gogh Owner

Filed under: Art

Pierre Konowaloff believes that Van Gogh's painting, "The Night Café," was stolen from his great-grandfather during the Communist takeover of Russia. Now, it belongs to Yale University, and he wants it back.

According to this claim, Ivan Morozov acquired the painting in 1908 and owned it until the Russian government snatched it in the 1918 "change" to Communism. What was Morozov's, it seems, became Lenin's. Then, it passed through galleries in Europe and New York until it was eventually left to Yale by a collector in 1961.

The hook, for Konowaloff, is that Yale took the painting "with reason to know that it had been unlawfully confiscated or 'nationalized' without compensation," according to a report in Bloomberg.

This isn't the only claim that Yale is facing. The university also has to contend with a suit by the Republic of Peru, which wants to reclaim artifacts excavated from Machu Picchu.

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Tags: art, artist, artwork, communism, communist, communist party, CommunistParty, communists, machu picchu, MachuPicchu, russia, scandal, scandals, van gogh, VanGogh, vincent van gogh, VincentVanGogh, yale, yale university, YaleUniversity

No Sale For Pricey Van Gogh

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

Usually Van Gogh is a hot seller at auctions by the big auction houses, setting astronomical sale prices. That wasn't the case at the Sotheby's Impressionist and Modern art sale recently for this painting. Van Gogh's 'The Fields (Wheat Fields)' was estimated to bring in between $28 million and $35 million. During the auction , bidding stalled out at $25 million and the painting did not sell.

The non-sale had a big impact on Sotheby's stock. In the days after the sale, shares of Sotheby's stock fell 28% yesterday based partly on fears that the action house is spending too much on money guarantees promised to sellers whether or not their art sells. Because the Van Gogh that didn't sell was guaranteed, Sotheby's now owns the painting. In these situations Sotheby's often then sells the painting privately to a dealer or collector.

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Tags: auction, van gogh, wheat fields

Van Gogh Painting is a Fake

by Sandy Maple (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Art

When Rupert Murdoch's father, Keith Murdoch, staged a contemporary art exhibit in Australia in 1939, Vincent Van Gogh's "Head of a Man" was on display. It was later purchased by Australia's National Gallery of Victoria for $3,500 and has been a part of their collection ever since. However, last August, when the painting was shown at the Dean Gallery in Edinburgh, Scotland, critics noticed something wasn't right. The work, dated 1886, appeared to be of a different style than other Van Gogh paintings during the same period. What's more, the painting was never mentioned in the artist's letters.

"Head of a Man" was then sent to the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam where experts have now declared it to be a fake. Gerard Vaughan, director of the National Gallery of Victoria, says the painting was most likely the work of a Van Gogh contemporary and makes clear that the painting was simply misattributed, not a deliberate forgery. Had the painting been authentic, it would have been valued at around $21 million.

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Tags: art, australia national gallery of victoria, AustraliaNationalGalleryOfVictoria, dean gallery, DeanGallery, fake, forgery, head of a man, HeadOfAMan, painting, rupert murdoch, RupertMurdoch, van gogh, VanGogh, vincent van gogh, VincentVanGogh

Vodka Goes Acai

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits

Have you tried acai? The acai fruit has hit the U.S. in a big way lately popping up in fruit smoothies and all sorts healthy drinks. The berry is considered a superfood. It grows atop trees in the Amazon rainforest and is very popular in Brazil. Now it gets it first vodka flavor following its fellow it fruit, the popular pomegranate. The latest flavor from the flavor-crazy Van Gogh vodka line is Acai-Blueberry. The overall flavor is blueberry with the acai following in on the finish giving it an exotic berry favor. The purple bottle is decorated with a Vincent Van Gogh-inspired depiction of a rain forest. The 70-proof vodka retails for about $25 per 750-liter bottle.

[via Avenue Vine]

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Tags: acai, blueberry, liquor, van gogh, VanGogh, vodka

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