The art forger who tricked the Nazis - Noah Charney

Prevodilac: Milenka Okuka Lektor: Ivana Korom

It was one of the strangest trials in Dutch history.

Bilo je to jedno od najčudnijih suđenja u istoriji Holandije.

The defendant in this 1947 case was an art forger

Branjenik u ovom slučaju iz 1947. godine je bio falsifikator umetnina

who had counterfeited millions of dollars worth of paintings.

koji je krivotvorio slike u vrednosti od više miliona dolara.

But he wasn’t arguing his innocence—

Međutim, on nije tvrdio da je nevin -

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

zapravo, život mu je zavisio na dokazivanju da je počinio prevaru.

Like many art forgers, Han van Meegeren was an artist

Kao i većina falsifikatora, Han van Megeren je bio umetnik

whose original works had failed to bring him renown.

čija originalna dela mu nisu donela priznanje.

Embittered towards the art world,

Ogorčen na svet umetnosti,

van Meegeren set out to make fools of his detractors.

van Megeren se zaputio da napravi budale od svojih klevetnika.

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.

njihove biografije, tehnike i materijale.

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

Umetnik koga je odabrao za svoju obmanu je bio barokni slikar iz XVII veka

Johannes Vermeer—

Johanes Vermer -

an ambitious decision given Vermeer was famed for his carefully executed

beše to ambiciozna odluka s obzirom na to da je Vermer bio čuven po svojim preciznim

and technically brilliant domestic scenes.

i tehnički briljantnim scenama domaćeg života.

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

Radeći u tajnosti šest godina, falsifikator je usavršio svoju umetnost,

copying numerous works as practice.

vežbajući kopiranje brojnih dela.

He mixed his own paints after researching the raw materials

Pravio je sopstvene boje nakon istraživanja o sirovim materijalima

and pigments available in Vermeer’s time.

i pigmentima dostupnim u Vermerovo vreme.

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

Kupovao je platna iz XVII veka, pravio sopstvene četkice,

and aged the works by applying synthetic resin

postizao da dela izgledaju staro upotrebom sintetičke smole

and baking them to dry and crack the paint.

i pekao ih je kako bi se boje osušile i ispucale.

A forensic test could have detected the synthetic resin.

Forenzički testovi bi detektovali sintetičku smolu.

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

No, u to vreme slični testovi nisu bili unapređeni, niti rasprostranjeni,

and even today verification of a painting’s authenticity

a čak se i danas potvrda autentičnosti slike

relies on the assessment of art specialists.

oslanja na procenu stručnjaka za umetnine.

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

Te se radi o njihovom subjektivnom sudu - kao i njihovoj reputaciji.

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

A upravo je tu van Megeren uistinu nadmudrio svet umetnosti.

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

Istražujući, saznao je da istoričari veruju kako je Vermer imao rani period

of religious painting influenced by the Italian painter Caravaggio.

religioznih slika na koje je uticao italijanski slikar Karavađo.

The leading authority on Vermeer, Abraham Bredius,

Vodeći autoritet za Vermera, Abraham Bredijus,

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

bio je veliki zagovornik ove teorije, iako nijedno slično delo nije pronađeno.

So van Meegeren decided to make one.

Stoga je van Megeren odlučio da ga naslika.

He called it "The Supper at Emmaus."

Naslovio ga je „Večera u Emausu”.

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

Bredijus je proglasio van Megerenov falsifikat remek-delom Vermerovog opusa.

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

Van Megerenov falsifikat nije baš bio dostojan tehničkih standarda Vermera,

but these inconsistencies could be made to fit the narrative:

međutim, nedoslednosti su mogle da se podese i uklope u priču:

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

ovo je bilo rano delo, napravljeno pre nego što je umetnik došao na svoje.

With the stamp of approval from the art world,

Uz pečat potvrde sveta umetnosti,

the fake was sold in 1937 for the equivalent

lažni primerak je prodat 1937. godine u vrednosti

of over $4 million in today’s money.

od preko četiri miliona dolara današnjeg novca.

The success prompted van Meegeren to forge and sell more works

Uspeh je podstakao van Megerena da falsifikuje i proda još dela

through various art dealers.

preko više trgovaca umetnina.

As unbelievable as it may sound,

Koliko god to zvučalo neverovatno,

the art world continued to believe in their authenticity.

svet umetnina je i dalje verovao u njihovu autentičnost.

When the Nazis occupied Holland during the Second World War,

Kada su nacisti okupirali Holandiju tokom Drugog svetskog rata,

Hermann Göring, one of Hitler’s top generals,

Herman Gering, jedan od Hitlerovih vrhovnih generala,

sought to add a Vermeer to his collection of artwork

želeo je da doda Vermera svojoj kolekciji umetnina

looted from all over Europe.

koje je opljačkao širom Evrope.

Van Meegeren obliged, selling him an alleged early Vermeer painting

Van Megeren se povinovao, prodavši mu navodno ranu Vermerovu sliku

titled "Christ with the Adulteress."

naslovljenu „Hrist i preljubnica”.

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

Sa promenom ratnih vetrova, izmenila se i van Megerenova sreća.

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

Nakon pobede Saveznika, uhapšen je jer je predao nacistima neprocenjiva dela

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

holandskog nasleđa - što je bio čin izdajničke kolaboracije

punishable by death.

kažnjiv smrću.

To prove the painting wasn’t a national treasure,

Kako bi dokazao da slika nije bila nacionalno blago,

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

objasnio je korak po korak kako ju je falsifikovao.

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

Suočio se, pak, sa neočekivanom preprekom, stručnjakom koji mu je omogućio prevaru.

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

Izazvan da štiti svoju reputaciju, Bredijus je branio autentičnost slike.

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

Sateran u ćošak, van Megeren se zaputio da radi na „novom” Veremeru.

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

Kada je sudu predstavio falsifikat, konačno su mu poverovali.

He was acquitted for collaborating with the Nazis—

Oslobođen je za saradnju sa nacistima -

and sentenced to a year imprisonment for fraud.

i osuđen na godinu dana zatvora zbog prevare.

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

Iako postoje dokazi da je van Megeren uistinu sarađivao sa nacistima,

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

uspeo je da ubedi javnost da je namerno prevario Geringa,

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

čime se preobratio u narodnog heroja koji je podvalio nacistima.

Thanks to this newfound notoriety,

Zahvaljujući novostečenoj slavi,

his works became valuable in their own right—

njegova dela su postala vredna sama po sebi -

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

toliko da ih je kasnije falsifikovao njegov sin.

The same canvases went from revered classics to despised forgeries

Ista platna su prešla put od obožavanih klasika, preko prezrenih falsifikata

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

do umetničkih dela cenjenih zbog umešnosti i ozloglašenosti krivotvoritelja.