Action on art forgeries

Action on art forgeries

I would like to respond to the article on art forgery written
by Putu Wirata in the June 29 issue of The Jakarta Post. I come
from an artist's family -- my father was the late Sudjana Kerton
who had a studio and gallery in Bandung. Practically ever since
my father's death in 1994, we have been aware of forgeries and
fakes of his work, many of which found their way to our doorstep,
brought by "mysterious" people who, after being told that the
works were not originals, swore that they themselves had then
also been cheated and lied to.

Fortunately for us, my family, including my father during his
lifetime, had attempted to document and record as many of the
works as possible. We have photos of most of the paintings that
my father completed here in Bandung, as well as most of the works
he did abroad. However, I think that many if not most of the
other artists whose works are being forged don't have proper
documentation of their works; indeed, my impression is that some
of them don't really seem to care that their works are being
copied -- and these are artists who are still alive. After
they're gone, I imagine that the forgeries will increase a
hundredfold. As Putu pointed out, the artist community is not
getting much help from the government as yet in this matter, so
it is of utmost importance that the artists themselves properly
document and record their artwork while they still can.

The casual way, also, in which these forgeries are being done
also reflects the low moral standard now prevalent -- sacrificing
morals for money. There seems to be no respect for an artist's
creative achievements, something that he created from his own
brain, psyche, consciousness and imagination ... and to have this
creativity crassly copied by unscrupulous individuals or parties
is a great injustice to the artist.

Tjandra Kerton

Bandung