The Art Forger
A fictional offshoot from the real-life art theft of the Gardner Museum in 1990, the highest valued in U.S. history, and which remains unsolved to this day. I was very intrigued by the reproduction methods detailed in the copying of an original artwork. I maintain that imitation is the highest form of flattery (provided of course, that it is not being pawned of as being authentic, and that rightful credit is given). Besides, not everyone has the financial wherewithal to own a original piece of art, especially that of the masters. But I digress, while a forger is skilled enough to replicate an original to the point of being (near) impossible to tell the difference, he/she may also be skilled or schooled enough to tell the difference between an original and a copy, which brings about this story -- that it was a fake which has been hanging in the Gardner Museum prior to its theft. Was Isabella Gardner, an avid art collector with a discerning eye, and with the counsel of an art adviser, swindled or misled into making the purchase?
