An untitled painting attributed to the Brazilian artist Tarsila do Amaral that was being offered during São Paulo’s SP Arte last week was a forgery, according to Jones Bergamin, the president and director of one of Brazil’s leading auction houses and secondary-market galleries, Bolsa de Arte.
Despite never having examined the work up close, Bergamin, in an article published on April 4 in the Brazilian newspaper Folha de S.Paulo, said “it is not an authentic work, I don’t need to see it up close to be sure of that. If you show me the image of a three-dollar bill I won’t need to hold it in my hand to say that it is not real.”
Thomaz Pacheco, the owner of the gallery that was selling the alleged forgery, OMA Galeria, disagreed with the claim and said it was not possible to judge the quality of a painting without seeing it firsthand.
“The people who have spoken out so far in the press, questioning the veracity of the work, none of them have seen the painting, no one.”
According to The Art Newspaper, the work was not part of the gallery’s presentation at the fair but rather shown privately to interested parties.
The painting was being offered for $3.2 million, which is part of the reason Bergamin believes it to be a phony. “If it were authentic, it would be more valuable than [$3.2 million], it should be worth [$5 million, $6 million],” the auctioneer said, adding that he was incredibly familiar with the artists and her pictures. In December 2020, Bolsa de Arte sold Do Amaral’s picture A Caipirinha (1923) for $11.2 million, a new record for a Brazilian artist at auction.
Following the articles publication SP Arte released a statement saying that the fair follows international standards in which “exhibitors present their projects and the analysis is carried out by a selection committee. Regarding the work itself, it was not displayed on the walls of the stand nor was it included in the approved project.”
The São Paulo-based specialist Douglas Quintale examined the painting in person but would not speak to its authenticity before further tests were run. “No one is capable of looking at a work that is not rudely made and say that it is false, without seeing it in situ and analyzing it scientifically. It’s irresponsible,” he told The Art Newspaper.
According to Quintale, both the artist’s estate and Pacheco are eager to test the work and verify its authenticity, a process that could take up to 90 days.