German art collector sues over copies
( 2003-08-27 14:37) (China Daily)
A German man filed a lawsuit
in Beijing on Monday against the Xu Beihong Memorial Museum and an art dealer
for allegedly selling him fakes of the Chinese master's work rather than
originals, reports Beijing Evening News.
Upon learning that Xu Beihong's works were considered representative of
Chinese paintings, John Korfer spent 165,000 yuan (US$20,000) on several pieces,
and some of other artists, at Wenzhijie Art Centre in 2001.
When Korfer asked why Wang Gaosheng, manager of the centre, was allowed to
sell the museum's paintings, Wang said he was a grandson of Xu. Wang affixed
stamps from the memorial museum to the receipts as well.
Korfer demanded 195,000 yuan (US$23,500) in compensation after learning that
all the paintings he bought were copies.
But Wang denied accusations of cheating, stressing that Korfer knew the
paintings were not originals when he bought them.
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