The art forger who tricked the Nazis - Noah Charney

Prevoditelj: Petra Lauš Recezent: Sanda L

It was one of the strangest trials in Dutch history.

Bilo je to jedno od najneobičnijih suđenja u povijesti Nizozemske.

The defendant in this 1947 case was an art forger

Optuženik u ovom slučaju iz 1947. bio je krivotvoritelj umjetnina

who had counterfeited millions of dollars worth of paintings.

koji je krivotvorio slike vrijedne milijune dolara.

But he wasn’t arguing his innocence—

Ali nije se branio da je nevin—

in fact, his life depended on proving that he had committed the fraud.

zapravo, njegov je život ovisio o tome da dokaže da je učinio prijevaru.

Like many art forgers, Han van Meegeren was an artist

Kao i mnogi krivotvoritelji umjetnina, Han van Meegeren bio je umjetnik

whose original works had failed to bring him renown.

i njegova mu djela nisu donijela slavu.

Embittered towards the art world,

Ogorčen na svijet umjetnosti,

van Meegeren set out to make fools of his detractors.

van Meegeren počeo je raditi budale od onih koji su ga omalovažavali.

He learned all he could about the Old Masters—

Naučio je sve što je mogao o starim majstorima —

their biographies, their techniques, and their materials.

o njihovim biografijama, tehnikama i materijalima.

The artist he chose for his deception was 17th century Baroque painter

Slikar kojeg je odabrao za svoju prijevaru bio je barokni slikar iz 17. stoljeća

Johannes Vermeer—

Johannes Vermeer —

an ambitious decision given Vermeer was famed for his carefully executed

ambiciozna odluka s obzirom na to da je Vermeer bio poznat po svojim preciznim

and technically brilliant domestic scenes.

i tehnički sjajno izvedenim scenama kućanstva.

Working in secret for six years, the forger perfected his art,

Radeći u tajnosti šest godina, krivotvoritelj je usavršio svoju vještinu,

copying numerous works as practice.

stvarajući kopije brojnih djela za vježbu.

He mixed his own paints after researching the raw materials

Miješao je svoje vlastite boje nakon što je istražio sirovine

and pigments available in Vermeer’s time.

i pigmente dostupne u Vermeerovo doba.

He bought 17th century canvases, created his own brushes,

Kupio je platna iz 17. stoljeća, napravio svoje vlastite kistove

and aged the works by applying synthetic resin

i učinio da djela izgledaju staro primjenjujući sintetičku smolu

and baking them to dry and crack the paint.

i pekući ih da boja izgleda suho i ispucalo.

A forensic test could have detected the synthetic resin.

Forenzički test mogao je otkriti sintetičku smolu.

But at the time, such tests were neither advanced nor widespread,

Ali tada takvi testovi nisu bili ni razvijeni ni široko rašireni,

and even today verification of a painting’s authenticity

čak se i danas potvrda autentičnosti slike

relies on the assessment of art specialists.

oslanja na procjenu stručnjaka za umjetnine.

So it’s a matter of their subjective judgment— as well as their reputation.

Pitanje je njihovog subjektivnog mišljenja kao i njihove reputacije.

And this is where van Meegeren truly outwitted the art world.

I tu je van Meegeren zaista nadmudrio svijet umjetnosti.

From his research, he knew historians believed Vermeer had an early period

Iz istraživanja znao je da su povjesničari mislili da je Vermeer imao rani period

of religious painting influenced by the Italian painter Caravaggio.

religioznih slika pod utjecajem talijanskog slikara Caravaggia.

The leading authority on Vermeer, Abraham Bredius,

Vodeći autoritet za Vermeera, Abraham Bredius

was a huge proponent of this theory, though none of these works had surfaced.

žarko je zastupao tu teoriju iako se ta djela nisu pojavila.

So van Meegeren decided to make one.

Pa je van Meegeren odlučio napraviti jedno.

He called it "The Supper at Emmaus."

On ga je nazvao „Večera u Emausu” .

Bredius declared van Meegeren’s fake the masterpiece of Vermeer’s oeuvre.

Bredius je objavio da je van Meegerenova krivotvorina remek djelo Vermeerova opusa.

Van Meegeren’s forgery was not totally up to Vermeer’s technical standards,

Falsifikat nije u potpunosti bio u skladu s Vermeerovim tehničkim standardima,

but these inconsistencies could be made to fit the narrative:

ali te su nedosljednosti mogle biti napravljene da odgovaraju narativu:

this was an early work, produced before the artist had come into his own.

ovo je bilo rano djelo, naslikano prije nego što je Vermeer postao Vermeer.

With the stamp of approval from the art world,

S odobrenjem svijeta umjetnosti,

the fake was sold in 1937 for the equivalent

krivotvorina je 1937. prodana za sumu ekvivalentnu

of over $4 million in today’s money.

iznosu većem od četiri milijuna današnjih dolara.

The success prompted van Meegeren to forge and sell more works

Uspjeh je potaknuo van Meegerena da krivotvori i prodaje više djela

through various art dealers.

preko raznih trgovaca umjetnina.

As unbelievable as it may sound,

Možda zvuči nevjerojatno,

the art world continued to believe in their authenticity.

no svijet umjetnosti nastavio je vjerovati u njihovu autentičnost.

When the Nazis occupied Holland during the Second World War,

Kada su nacisti okupirali Nizozemsku tijekom Drugog svjetskog rata,

Hermann Göring, one of Hitler’s top generals,

Hermann Göring, jedan od Hitlerovih najviših generala,

sought to add a Vermeer to his collection of artwork

želio je dodati djelo Vermeera svojoj zbirci umjetnina

looted from all over Europe.

ukradenih širom Europe.

Van Meegeren obliged, selling him an alleged early Vermeer painting

Van Meegeren je pristao, prodavši mu lažnu Vermeerovu sliku iz ranog perioda

titled "Christ with the Adulteress."

pod nazivom „Isus i preljubnica”.

As the tide of the war turned, so did van Meegeren’s luck.

Kako se tijek rata promijenio, promijenila se i van Meegerenova sreća.

Following the Allied victory, he was arrested for delivering a priceless piece

Nakon pobjede Saveznika, uhićen je jer je dao neprocjenjivo djelo

of Dutch heritage to the Nazis— an act of treasonous collaboration

nizozemske baštine nacistima — što je čin izdajničke kolaboracije

punishable by death.

kažnjiv smrću.

To prove the painting wasn’t a national treasure,

Kako bi dokazao da slika nije nacionalno blago,

he explained step-by-step how he had forged it.

objasnio je kako ju je krivotvorio korak po korak.

But he faced an unexpected obstacle— the very expert who had enabled his scam.

Ali suočio se s neočekivanom preprekom — sa stručnjakom koji je omogućio prijevaru.

Moved to protect his reputation, Bredius defended the painting’s authenticity.

Kako bi zaštitio svoju reputaciju, Bredius je branio autentičnost slike.

With few options left, van Meegeren set to work on a "new" Vermeer.

Kako je imao malo opcija, van Meegeren počeo je raditi na "novom" Vermeeru.

When he presented the fake to the court, they finally believed him.

Kada je krivotvorinu predstavio na sudu, napokon su mu povjerovali.

He was acquitted for collaborating with the Nazis—

Oslobođen je optužbe za kolaboraciju s nacistima

and sentenced to a year imprisonment for fraud.

i osuđen na godinu dana zatvora zbog prijevare.

Though there’s evidence that van Meegeren did, in fact, collaborate with the Nazis,

Iako ima dokaza da je van Meegeren stvarno kolaborirao s nacistima,

he managed to convince the public that he had tricked Göring on purpose,

uspio je uvjeriti javnost da je Göringa namjerno prevario,

transforming his image into that of a folk hero who had swindled the Nazis.

pretvorivši svoj ugled u narodnog heroja koji je prevario naciste.

Thanks to this newfound notoriety,

Zahvaljujući novoj zloglasnosti,

his works became valuable in their own right—

njegova su djela postala vrijedna sama po sebi,

so much so that they were later forged in turn by his own son.

toliko da ih je kasnije krivotvorio njegov vlastiti sin.

The same canvases went from revered classics to despised forgeries

Ista su platna bila obožavani klasici i prezrene krivotvorine,

to works of art respected for the skill and notoriety of the forger.

a poslije umjetnine poznate po vještini i zloglasnosti krivotvoritelja.