Freud and the naked truth over a pair of nudes
Lucian Freud’s nude portraits continue to command giddy sums even after his death, with Benefits supervisor resting achieving a world record in 2015 when it sold for more than £35 million.
now two charcoal nude sketchs allegedly by Freud have surfaced on eBay for a relative steal — one priced at just £55,000, the other at £50,000.
But are they what they seem? Both are described as ‘original charcoal on paper’, date from the 1940s to 1950s and are hand-signed by the artist.
Of the first item, the vendor, an art dealer called Finefoxart, says it is ‘a very rare opportunity to acquire an original signed work by Lucian Freud. With good provenance’. However, there is no elaboration on the said provenance.
When i asked the vendor for further details, answer came there none.
even david dawson, Freud’s former personal assistant for 12 years, casts doubt on whether they are the genuine article. ‘i do not recognise these of having anything to do with
Lucian’s hand,’ he tells me. ‘i would stay well clear.’
Freud, who died aged 88 in 2011, left £96 million in his will — with 14 children acknowledged and many unacknowledged. He bequeathed to dawson £2.5 million and his West London home.
Freud’s reputatation has only grown since his death — as have opportunities for fraud. Last year, Vincent dyer was given a four-month suspected jail term after trying to sell a fake version of a Freud work ‘worth millions’ on eBay for just £3,000.
in his advert, dyer wrote: ‘ in very good condition. Has been kept in secure storage for many years.’
Luckily, the Finefoxart sales note does include this proviso. ‘ in the unlikely event that the article is not genuine, we will make an immediate and full refund, without hesitation, if the item is returned to us in exactly the same condition.’