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Article Archive
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Hyde in Plain Sight— Art & Antiques, September 2010
Tucked away in rural Upstate New York, the Hyde Collection is a distinctive museum with a distinguished history, writes Jonathan Lopez.
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'Displaced Persons' spins hypnotic tale of postwar survival — Jonathan Lopez for The Associated Press, August 11, 2010
"Displaced Persons" (William Morrow, $25.99), by Ghita Schwarz: In this powerful debut novel, author Ghita Schwarz, a child of Holocaust survivors...
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Stealing and Dealing— Art & Antiques, Summer 2010
Retired G-man Robert Wittman speaks to Jonathan Lopez about the real motivations behind art theft.
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The Iceman Cometh— Apollo, July-August 2010
Jonathan Lopez visits an exhibition of Hendrick Avercamp's winter landscapes at the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, and the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
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FBI agent writes memoir about solving art crimes — Jonathan Lopez for The Associated Press, June 2, 2010
“Priceless: How I Went Undercover to Rescue the World’s Stolen Treasures” (Crown, 336 pages, $25), by Robert K. Wittman: In this stunning autobiography, former FBI undercover agent Robert K. Wittman...
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Talking Pictures: Cops and Counterfeiters— Art & Antiques, June 2010
An exhibition at the American Numismatic Society chronicles the evolving artistry on both sides of the law, writes Jonathan Lopez.
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Castelli's life and influence on modern art — Jonathan Lopez, Globe Correspondent, The Boston Globe, May 29, 2010
"Leo and His Circle: The Life of Leo Castelli," by Annie Cohen-Solal, translated from the French by Mark Polizzotti, Knopf, 576 pp., illustrated, $35: From the mid-1950s until his death in 1999, Leo Castelli, the renowned New York gallery owner...
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Talking Pictures: A Forger's Fears— Art & Antiques, May 2010
Mark Forgy, longtime companion of forger Elmyr de Hory, speaks with Jonathan Lopez about the benefits and liabilities of living with one of the world's most notorious art criminals.
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Author shows role of Betsy Ross in creating Stars and Stripes was complex, elusive — Jonathan Lopez for The Associated Press, April 29, 2010
“Betsy Ross and the Making of America” (Holt. 480 pages. $30.00), by Marla R. Miller: Every American schoolchild knows the legend... |
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Talking Pictures: Art Work — Art & Antiques, April 2010
Jonathan Lopez speaks with New York painter and draughtsman Stephen Talasnik about the challenges of earning a living as an artist.
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Ringing the Changes — Apollo, April 2010
Jonathan Lopez welcomes an exhibition organised by the Ringling Museum, Sarasota, Florida, and now at the the Marble House, Newport, Rhode Island, that explores the legacy of France's historical revivalism in the 19th-century.
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Talking Pictures: Modernizing the Mauritshuis— Art & Antiques, March 2010
Director Emilie Gordenker is taking the venerable Dutch museum into the internet age while preserving its understated elegance, writes Jonathan Lopez.
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Chronicling a Grand Diamond Heist — Jonathan Lopez, Globe Correspondent, The Boston Globe, February 6, 2010
"Flawless: Inside the Largest Diamond Heist in History," by Scott Andrew Selby and Greg Campbell, Union Square, 336 pp., $24.95: No safe, however secure, is impregnable. No criminal scheme, however cunning, is foolproof...
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Talking Pictures: A Life in Letters — Art & Antiques, February 2010
A new annotated edition of Vincent van Gogh's letters reveals the full scope, depth, and context of the artist's correspondence, writes Jonathan Lopez.
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Talking Pictures: Sons, Fathers and Forefathers — Art & Antiques, January 2010
Jonathan Lopez speaks with author Henry Adams about Jackson Pollock, family ties and the nature of influence.
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Michelangelo, redefined: This detailed portrait of the master brings to life the man but not his times — Jonathan Lopez for The Boston Globe, December 27, 2009
William Wallace, a professor of art history at Washington University in Saint Louis, is widely considered America’s preeminent authority on Michelangelo. In an array of scholarly books and articles...
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Talking Pictures: Christmas Present, Christmas Past — Art & Antiques, December 2009
For the first time in two decades, the Brooklyn Museum unveils James Tissot's monumental series "The Life of Christ," writes Jonathan Lopez.
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Master of Light — Apollo, November 2009
An exhibition now in Los Angeles goes to the heart of 18th-century Spanish still-life painter Luis Meléndez, who sought fame and fortune but had to settle for mere greatness, writes Jonathan Lopez. |
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Talking Pictures: The Scholar Dealer — Art & Antiques, November 2009
Otto Naumann, America's preeminent dealer in Dutch Old Master paintings, puts his knowledge to work for his clients, writes Jonathan Lopez. |
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New book puts spotlight on the Bauhaus movement — Jonathan Lopez for The Associated Press, October 29, 2009
“The Bauhaus Group: Six Masters of Modernism” (Knopf. 544 pages. $40.00), by Nicholas Fox Weber: In this informal group biography, art historian Weber... |
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Talking Pictures: Maid in Manhattan — Art & Antiques, October 2009
At long last, Vermeer's enigmatic "Milkmaid" is on view in the U. S., writes Jonathan Lopez. |
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"The Man Who Loved Books Too Much" stole them — Jonathan Lopez for The Associated Press, September 21, 2009
Over a period of about ten years, book collector John Gilkey of Modesto, Calif., acquired an impressive array of rare first editions... |
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Rescuing Rembrandt: "Monuments Men" and "Venus Fixers" recount how Allied soldiers and scholars saved cultural treasures from destruction and the Nazis — Jonathan Lopez for The Boston Globe, September 6, 2009
During the darkest days of World War II, a ragtag band of British and American art scholars braved the battlefields of Europe to rescue thousands of cultural treasures... |
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Talking Pictures: The Great Debate — Art & Antiques, September 2009
An exhibition in Washington on the late 15th/early 16th century Venetian sculptor Tullio Lombardo revives a Renaissance argument between painters and sculptors, writes Jonathan Lopez. |
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Rivals in Venice — Apollo, July / August 2009
An ambitious attempt to chart how the careers of Titian, Tintoretto and Veronese intertwined presents all three artists in a novel - and not always flattering - light, writes Jonathan Lopez. |
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Talking Pictures: Curatorial Logic — Art & Antiques, Summer 2009
Rafael Viñoly's expansion of the Cleveland Museum of Art fulfills the promise of the original design, writes Jonathan Lopez. |
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Seven Eighths Underwater — Journal of Art Crime, July 2009
Jonathan Lopez discusses the methodology for researching historical art crime, where the facts - like seven eighths of an iceberg - are generally hidden from view. |
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Talking Pictures: Revolutionary Road — Art & Antiques, June 2009
In Mexico, Edward Weston made waves with photography, not politics, writes Jonathan Lopez. |
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Relaxing on the River — Apollo, June 2009
An exhibition focusing on Gustave Caillebotte’s depictions of water captures the essence of his art, writes Jonathan Lopez. |
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Bamboozling Ourselves (and More Bamboozling) — New York Times, May 27 - June 17, 2009
Academy Award winning documentary filmmaker Errol Morris interviews Jonathan Lopez for a seven-part series on the Van Meegeren case and the Netherlands during World War II. |
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Talking Pictures: A Holland-America Line— Art & Antiques, May 2009
The National Gallery's acquisition of a major Ter Brugghen opens a window on the history of taste, writes Jonathan Lopez. |
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Lady vanishes: two books on the Mona Lisa theft — Jonathan Lopez for The Boston Globe, May 17, 2009
On Aug. 21, 1911, a journeyman laborer named Vincenzo Peruggia surreptitiously unhooked Leonardo da Vinci's "Mona Lisa" from the walls of the Louvre and headed off to a service stairwell...
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Interview -- The Essential Vermeer, April 2009
Jonathan Lopez discusses his new book, "The Man Who Made Vermeers," with Jonathan Janson at TheEssentialVermeer.com. |
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Pride of Place -- Apollo, March 2009
Jonathan Lopez visits a show at the Mauritshuis and the National Gallery of Art that teases out the meanings behind the Dutch tradition of 'town views'. |
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Madoff's Moment -- U.S. News & World Report, March 16, 2009
Psychologically, the New York financial scam is reminiscent of great art forgery swindles of the past, writes Jonathan Lopez. |
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Andrew Wyeth -- Art & Antiques, March 2009
Upon the occasion of the artist's death, Jonathan Lopez looks back at A & A's coverage of the 'Helga' contretemps of 1986 and assesses Wyeth's legacy. |
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"Gardner Heist" author turned sleuth posits plausible theories about world's largest art theft -- Jonathan Lopez for The Associated Press, Feb. 22, 2009
Just after midnight on March 18, 1990, two men wearing police uniforms knocked on the door of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, informing the guard on duty that they had received a complaint about a disturbance on the premises...
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The Light of God -- Apollo, February 2009
An exhibition of Van Gogh’s night scenes opens this month in Amsterdam after its New York showing. As Jonathan Lopez explains, it draws attention to the neglected religious background to these paintings. |
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A Legacy of Plunder -- ARTnews, January 2009
A new book lays bare the entire paintings collection of Hitler henchman Hermann Goering, reports Jonathan Lopez. |
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Out of the Shadows -- Apollo, January 2009
Far from playing second fiddle to Rembrandt, Jan Lievens was a virtuoso innovator in his own right throughout his long career, as an exhibition in Washington demonstrates, writes Jonathan Lopez. |
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"Unholy Business" spins a good yarn about faith, fraud, and forgery --Jonathan Lopez for The Associated Press, November 6, 2008
In November 2002, an article in The Biblical Archaeology Review heralded the discovery of an ancient Judean ossuary — a limestone box intended for the storage of human remains. The story was immediately picked up by CNN, ABC and many of the world's major newspapers. Attention of that kind is quite rare in the sleepy precincts of archaeology, but this was no ordinary ossuary...
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The Met After Montebello -- Apollo, October 2008
Philippe de Montebello, director of the Metropolitan Museum, New York, since 1977, retires at the end of this year. As the museum prepares to mark the event with an exhibition of acquisitions made over the last 31 years, Jonathan Lopez assesses the de Montebello legacy and considers the museum's future under its newly appointed director, Thomas P. Campbell.
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"Going Dutch" offers a thought-provoking look at relations between England and the Netherlands -- Jonathan Lopez for The Associated Press, September 26, 2008
In November 1688, Prince William of Orange, the elected leader of the Dutch republic, set sail from the port of Hellevoetsluis in command of a 450-ship invasion fleet bound for England... |
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Art in an Age of Ease -- Apollo, September 2008
An exhibition organised by the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and now at the Nasher Museum of Art, makes a bold and persuasive case for the artistic achievements of the neglected reign of Philip III of Spain, writes Jonathan Lopez. |
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Fakery Behind Closed Doors -- De Groene Amsterdammer, August 29, 2008
Han van Meegeren was not a misunderstood genius; he was a forger down to the bone. He was also a Nazi sympathizer and collaborator. As the historian Jonathan Lopez--whose new biography of Van Meegeren has just appeared in America--explains, this too went hand in hand with Van Meegeren's career in fraud. (subscription site; article in Dutch)
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A Forger's Masterpieces -- by Jonathan Lopez (International Herald Tribune) August 11, 2008
Smart, knowledgeable people can sometimes be taken in by attractively packaged products of little inherent value. |
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Impersonator of Noel Coward, Humphrey Bogart, others comes clean in memoir about her forgeries — Jonathan Lopez for The Associated Press, July 31, 2008
"She is a bright, talented actress," Noel Coward once wrote of Julie Andrews, "and quite attractive since she dealt with her monstrous English overbite."
Pure Coward — except that it isn't. Banged out on an old Olympia typewriter in 1991, this quote was invented by Lee Israel, the screwball literary forger of Manhattan's Upper West Side. During an improbable crime spree lasting approximately 18 months, Israel impersonated...
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Van Meegeren's Early Vermeers -- Apollo, July-August 2008
Jonathan Lopez reveals that three 1920s fake Vermeers are by the notorious forger Han van Meegeren, who, far from being an independent operator, was part of a slick operation of organised art fraud. |
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National Treasure -- Apollo, June 2008
Revered in his native Spain, Antonio Lopez Garcia is little known outside it. An exhibition in Boston could change that, writes Jonathan Lopez.
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A Skilful Charmer -- Apollo, March 2008
At the Rijksmuseum, the first monographic exhibition ever devoted to Karel du Jardin reveals a versatile painter with a taste for the good life, writes Jonathan Lopez. |
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Protestant Virtues -- Apollo, January 2008
To mark the publication of a catalogue of its Dutch paintings, the Metropolitan Museum of Art is showing its entire collection, writes Jonathan Lopez. |
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Gross False Pretences: The Misdeeds of Art Dealer Leo Nardus -- Apollo, December 2007
Several of the greatest collectors of Old Master paintings in turn-of-the-century America were sold fakes or wildly misattributed works by Leo Nardus. Drawing on newly discovered documents, Jonathan Lopez explains how Nardus was exposed and discusses the impact of his chicanery on the art market.
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The Master Forger and the Fascist Dream -- De Groene Amsterdammer, September 29, 2006
The famed art forger Han van Meegeren found Nazism quite appealing. He made paintings for the occupation government and proudly dedicated these works to Hitler at public exhibitions. Deceit, wrath, and treachery were like second nature... The American historian Jonathan Lopez is working on a biography of Han van Meegeren that is scheduled to appear in two years' time. In the course of his research, Lopez has discovered large numbers of previously unknown documents that cast a revealing light on Van Meegeren's personality, on his work as an artist and forger, and on his relationships--for instance, with prominent members of the Liberal State Party, one of whom, Gerard A. Boon was duped into acting as a strawman for Van Meegeren in the sale of forgeries. The notorious investigation into Van Meegeren's wartime collaboration--part of the complex and disorderly postwar purge process--has always been surrounded by riddles. The central question was to what extent Van Meegeren really embraced Nazi ideology. In the article below, Lopez reveals that Van Meegeren's sympathies were far browner than has generally been assumed... (Subscription site; article in Dutch. English translation available as Pdf at Scribd.) |
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