If you want a thoughtful, detailed review of this book, you can't do better than to read Ginnie's under the book. I'll just comment that I was fascinated by it. Never realized Han Meegeren was so cozy with the Nazis.

Jonathan, I'm overwhelmed by the amount of research you did for this book. Can you read Dutch? How long was the book in the works? How much travel was involved? Wow, what an undertaking.

I think I read a review of this and another book on van Meegeren in the New Yorker - or more precisely, one of their oddly melded reviews of both book(s) and the subject life. Is the author a member of Constant Reader? If so, congratulations on getting such a good and prominent review.

Theresa

I'm going to put a link here so that it's easier to get to the book: The Man Who Made Vermeers: Unvarnishing the Legend of Master Forger Han van Meegeren

There are several recent books on the same subject, but two of them are fakes.

Hee hee.

Okay, I am a new member to this group. And having read the commentary here am now going to read this book too! You guys have hooked me on this one.

It is definitely intriguing. It's going on my TBR list too. Plus, Jonathan is a constant reader!

Oh, my gosh! My library owns it! I talked to Jonathan by email after he appeared on a radio program here (in Ann Arbor), but I didn't expect my library to buy it. Once again, I am impressed with them. This is the library in Ypsilanti, not the big university community of AA.

Added to my Amazon Wish List, btw, Amazon is sold out of the book. :)

Hi everyone,

I'm flattered by this thread! Thanks so much to everyone!!!!

Thanks for your questions Ruth! I do read Dutch. I studied it a little in school but really had to perfect it for the research for this project. The research took about 3 years, plus a year of writing. I spent a lot of time in the Netherlands working in the archives and interviewing people who had some connection to the story (usually elderly people who were related to Van Meegeren's accomplices). I also did some research in Germany and England, as well as in the U.S. (Washington, NYC, Philadelphia, California).

Theresa -- thanks for the compliments on The New Yorker review. I was totally thrilled by it. It was so generous and so well-written. I really couldn't ask for a better review.

Barbara -- I enjoyed chatting with you when I got back from Michigan. So glad your library has the book!

And everyone -- thank you so much for all of your kind words! And all best wishes for the new year!

- Jonathan

PS If you'll forgive a moment of self-promotion, The New Yorker piece that Theresa refers to, as well as radio interviews and information on upcoming events at museums and libraries in DC, NYC, Boston, and elsewhere, are posted on the book's website
www.themanwhomadevermeers.com/ It would be fun to meet CR members if you can make it to any of these events! The one in DC is a free lecture at the National Gallery on January 11th. Thanks for indulging me! And best wishes for a wonderful new year to one and all!!!!

I just came from an exploration of the website, Jonathan. It was nice to see the photos in color. I would have loved to have color illustrations in the book, but I know that would have kicked the price way up.

I wish I could come see you at the Nat Gal., but that's 3000 miles away. Any plans to come to Southern California in the offing?

Thanks Ruth,

It would have been great to have the photos in color but, as you say, it would have been hugely expensive. So unfortunately the website is the best we can do for color.

I've been trying to set something up in the LA area, but so far no luck. The Norton Simon museum is borrowing a Vermeer from the Frick Collection, here in NYC, but I contacted them too late to make it on to their roster for that show

If you have any suggestions please pass them along! I'd love to do something on the west coast.

All best,
Jonathan

I read this book after seeing the review in the New Yorker, and was fully engrossed. I was especially drawn into the character study of the artist turned forger turned Nazi supporter. How a man lost his way in the most profound sense. Wonderful to find the author here on goodreads. Congratulations.

I hope to go to the event at the Jewish Museum next year, if nothing comes up to prevent me.

Congrats on your book Jonathan. I have put it on my To Read pile. I do not think I will be able to venture in to Boston in February for your lecture though it did give me flashbacks to a course I took at the MFA back in college. I'm sure your lecture will be much more interesting ;0)

I totally have to get this book. I love anything to do with art heists and forgeries. I just watched the documentary Stolen last night.

http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/stole...

Thanks Candy! I'll have to check out Stolen. It looks really interesting!

Candy wrote: "I totally have to get this book. I love anything to do with art heists and forgeries. I just watched the documentary Stolen last night.

http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/stole...
"

Thanks Molly, Yulia and Jean!
And Molly -- I can only hope that my talk at the MFA in Boston will be more entertaining than the class you took!
- Jonathan

When is the talk at the MFA in Boston?

Jonathan wrote: "Thanks Molly, Yulia and Jean!
And Molly -- I can only hope that my talk at the MFA in Boston will be more entertaining than the class you took!
- Jonathan "

Jean - on 02/25 @ 7PM at the MFA - tickets avail. on the MFA website. I start hibernating with books when the temps drop below 40 so I highly doubt I will venture out - as interesting as Jonathan's lecture seems it would be. But I would also like to read the book first. Jonathan - you need to come back to Boston in the Spring (before Red Sox season gets too far underway of course) - not too demanding or anything am I ;0)

I have to admit that February might not be the ideal month to be in Boston...A mid-winter talk in Ruth's neck of the woods (southern California) would probably be more enjoyable, all things considered. But the MFA is heated, so maybe people will come to the lecture just to get in out of the cold!

I wish I had a good suggestion for a Southern California venue, Jonathan. All I can think of are the obvious institutions like the Getty and LACMA, etc., which of course you know about already. I've been relatively inactive on the art front for the last 10-15 years, and don't have any good contacts up my sleeve.

Come on...all the lights are pretty on the magnificent mile. You can go to Buddy Guy's for soul food...who cares if it's freezing in Chicago...please please come to Chicago!

Gee isn't that an old song "please come to Chicago"...I looked it up...it is a song!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fEFsBF1X1...

"Please Come To Boston For The Springtime" is also a song.

Hee hee...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1PX5t9VJw...

Although I'm not coming to Chicago, Candy (I contacted the Art Institute too late to make it on to their spring schedule), I'm actually pleased to report that The Man Who Made Vermeers is the Art Institute of Chicago's members' book club selection for January. The meeting where they'll be discussing the book is on January 29th at 6 PM. I wish I could be there!

Duly noted. I am so geeked. I've been to a few of these events and they are a nerds heaven. I saw a fellow speak about the antikythera mechanism (Jonathan...if you need an idea for another book...I would totally LOVE to read an analysis of this machine...I am so into it!) and he was a kind of real life Indiana Jones. Really cool bunch of folks I've run into down there.

http://www.antikythera-mechanism.gr/

Which leads me to ask...are you able to share what you are working on next? I understand if you aren't. Especially in such a strange competitive world of publishing...film making is similar and art...I even blocked off my studio for my family when they came over during the holidays. I don't like to talk about what I'm working on in the midst of it...kind of like a jinx or I'm too "researchy" to speak normal..., yikes huh?

Candy - I didn't say I LIKED the song - just that there was one :0)

The Antikythera Mechanism is a great topic, Candy. I even love the name! I remember reading an article about it a couple of years ago, but I had forgotten about it until you mentioned it. I wonder if anyone is working on a book about it...Maybe the real life Indiana Jones?....hmmm.....

For my part, I've started preliminary research on a couple of different possible projects and will hope to have settled on a "next topic" within the next few months. I'll be happy to keep you posted!

Your description of the Art Institute book club is hysterical. Now I really wish I could be there! (Although Chicago in January gives Boston in February a run for its money.) If you do go, please let me know how it is.

Happy new year to everyone!

Do you think the Antikythera Mechanism might be a forgery too?

Jean, I've spent a lot of time wondering that too.

I am pretty obsessed with it...I've wanted to try to get to visit the spot where they are researching it. I'd love to look at it.

I believe the people working on this mechanism are legit. They have used carbon testing etc.



At this point...the scientists etc seem like responsible people.

The thing about a hoax is often people begin to believe the hype themselves!

Can you tell I am having fun now that I finally figured out how to post a picture?

Jean, one of the things that gives me hope this isn't hoax is the writing on the mechanism. there is a lot of writing and so far...as translations make their way to the public, they are very interesting.

It is the writing on this thing that I believe is the best part of it...and I wish the researchers would just release all the texts.

Hmmm...if it IS a hoax, then it just might be the ideal next topic for me! Much to think about here!

Archaeology magazine had a good article about the machine last year; it can be found online at http://www.archaeology.org/0703/abstract...

Good luck at the National Gallery -- wish I could make it!

Jonathan, which are you more interested in, the art connection (since you're an artist), or the hoax idea?

Thanks for the tip James! I'll check out that article.

I think I'm most interested in the mystery -- what is it? How would we find out? Who are the people who are looking into it? What interests them about it? As to whether or not it's a hoax, well, I guess that's a bonus.

That said, as an artist and art historian, I'm fascinated by the physical properties of the object as well. I've always been interested in how and why things work the way they do, and the Antikythera Machine seems like a great topic to dive into (no pun intended).

In all likelihood, though, my next book will probably be on a topic more in keeping with The Man Who Made Vermeers -- either dealing with an artist or a collector. Right now I'm still doing so much traveling and promotion for this book, as well as writing freelance articles and reviews, that I haven't had the time that I need to put together a proposal. But I really have to start making time, since the next book contract isn't going to fall from the sky.... If only we could do something about the fact that days have only 24 hours in them....

Terrific book, Jonathan. Here's what I don't get: you make it so clear that Van Meegeren was a fascist and that his paintings are Nazi-inspired. How come he's been seen as some kind of hero? The man's a confessed liar. Why did biographers take him at his word for so long?

Well, I think the story that Van Meegeren concocted -- that he was a misunderstood artist seeking revenge after a lifetime of disappointment -- was just so appealing that no one has really wanted to look beneath the surface. And certainly no one wanted to believe that the man who swindled Goering was a Nazi collaborator himself.

In a way, it's kind of like the question of how Bernie Madoff (allegedly) managed to operate the biggest Ponzi scheme in history for more than a decade For years and years it was obvious to disinterested observers that Madoff's "profits" were fictitious. But, despite multiple warnings, no one wanted to investigate. In the same way, Van Meegeren's self-serving story was so attractive, especially in the immediate post-war era, that no one wanted to have the illusion shattered.

I'd like to hear more about how you got involved in this in the first place. What made you decide to write a book? How did you go about the tremendous amount of research necessary? I'd have thrown up my hands in despair.

Hi Ruth,

Good questions!

How did I get interested in the topic? Well,I guess I was first drawn in by its colossal mistakes. The Van Meegeren case is pretty much the most spectacular set of errors by art experts, collectors, dealers, etc. of all time. How did all of these people make the same mistake? And why?

I guess you could say that's what attracted me first, instead of the more obvious hooks--like, for instance, the fact that Van Meegeren’s most famous dupe was Hermann Goering, or that there were enormous sums of money involved with the Vermeer swindles, or that Van Meegeren had an extravagantly sordid sex life. All of that’s quite interesting too, of course, but it wasn’t what initially sparked my interest.

That said, Van Meegeren is certainly a fascinating figure. In photos of his trial in 1947 he looks kind of like David Niven--silver hair brushed back from his forehead, impeccably tailored suit--all very soigné. He predated Ian Fleming’s novels, but he cultivated the kind of amused disdain of a James Bond villain. In fact, I think he would have liked people to imagine him that way--as a sort of dangerous, impressive character. But the thing is that no one ever really took him all that seriously because he was so over the top, especially in his cynicism, which tended to become quite voluble when he was drunk, and that was more often than not.

As far as the archival research in Dutch goes, I had read all the existing books on Van Meegeren, and although some of them are pretty good, none really got at the issues that interested me most. I wanted to get to the bottom of the story, and the only way to do that was to go back to the original sources--trial testimony, investigation reports, correspondence, etc.--and really bear down hard on the facts of the case in a way that hadn’t been done before. I wanted to present the story with a deep sense of history. There would have been no way to do these things without knowing the language, so I beefed up my Dutch and set off!

I ended up spending several years sifting through documents in a variety of Dutch archives and really immersing myself in the literature of the period. I also conducted a lot of interviews with descendants of Van Meegeren’s friends, his patrons, his partners in crime. These people all speak perfect English--as does almost everyone in the Netherlands--but for some reason they always seemed to find it quite endearing when I tried to communicate in Dutch. It gave me a measure of credibility, I think. Also, I often say things in Dutch that are inadvertently comical. So I had a good time doing the research.

I realize this is probably a much longer answer than you really wanted. Sorry to go on. I guess I'm still pretty passionate about the subject after all these years!

Thanks so much for your interest!
Jonathan

Ruth,

Jonathan wrote an article about another compelling faker, art dealer Leo Nardus, that is available online at:

http://www.apollo-magazine.co.uk/feature...

(Nardus is in The Man Who Made Vermeers: Unvarnishing the Legend of Master Forger Han van Meegeren, but this article fleshes out his story.)

Thanks, James, I'll check it out.

Jonathan, not at all too much information. I find it fascinating.

I just reread the NYer review of your book. I read it when it first came out, but it was more interesting now that I know you and the book. And Scheldahl, too. Big name in art crit. Altho he mentioned the Olnick(?) book, he spent much more space on yours.

Reading the article I was reminded how intrigued I was when reading the book to see you say that a forgery soaks up clues to the time in which it was made, clues that usually become evident after about 40 years.

It reminded me how many times I told my drawing and painting students that even if they wanted to paint like Rembrandt, or Leonardo, or whoever, no matter how hard they tried, something of their own age and time would seep in.

Only slightly off topic, but Ruth's comment about "something of their own age and time seep in" reminded me of a great book, Nobody's Perfect by the recently deceased Donald E. Westlake. I'm not giving away too much to say that a painting is stolen and then the crooks lose it (or it's stolen from them--I can't remember) and they have to get a new one forged as a replacement. Well worth seeking out.

Hi Everyone!

I was so excited when I saw The Man Who Made Vermeers in the issue of the Virginia Quarterly Review that arrived yesterday! It said: "Here is a serious, funny, ironic, informative study of a delicious scoundrel that reads like a novel." Great job, Jonathan!

Bravo!

Thanks so much everyone! I'm really flattered by all of your attention!

I'm going to be off-line for a couple of days because I'm heading to DC to give a talk at the National Gallery. That is, if I don't get snowed in. I'll let you know how it goes!

Have a great weekend,
Jonathan

Break a leg.

This is a fantastic book - I read it after the great review in The New Yorker and it lives up to that review's glowing words.

One tiny, tiny quibble, that can maybe be addressed in future editions: I'm an economic historian and I noted that the information about the German hyperinflation in the discussion of von Bode is completely incorrect (the most devastating stage of the hyperinflation was in 1923, not 1921; the dollar to Mark conversion rate was never 1$=2Marks, but 1$=4Marks and that was not in 1920, but in 1913, and at the height of the hyperinflation, the conversion wasn't 1$=4 million marks as stated, but closer to 1$=1.3 trillion Marks. (Gordon Craig's history of Germany - Germany: 1866-1945 has a great chart of the progress of hyperinflation.) I"m sorry to harp on this flaw in an otherwise fantastic book, but I thought you'd want to have that inaccuracy fixed!

Hi. I'm new here. Jonathan - I just read your great book. Amazing research. I've read a lot of the other books about Van Meegeren, but I got a whole new perspective from this. I guess it's because you know Dutch. You really blow the standard version of the story out of the water. Nice job.