«I JUST READ EVERYTHING»

If you are an art enthusiast tempted to splash out on an apparent bargain, lured by the prospect that it could be a little-known work by a great painter, then you might want to think again. Art experts are warning of the rapid spread of a new con-trick infecting the market, which involves cheaply produced works in the style of great artists being sold by dealers who dishonestly suggest they are genuine.

The practice is known as “trapping” and is said to be increasingly popular on internet auction sites, as well as in auction houses, antiques shops and street markets. Unlike more traditional forgery, where well-known works are reproduced by sophisticated fraudsters in order to dupe experts, trapping is targeted at the more amateur buyers hoping to snare themselves a bargain.

-The Telegraph

 jan 12 2014