Today's "Kommersant". Opinion Andrew Ruzhnikova, expert and partner fund Aurora Fine Arts Investments.
- What is caused by your decision to go to court against the auction house Christie `s?
- The story stretches nearly five years since, as in summer 2006, our fund has received the first examination did not confirm the authenticity of a painting by Boris Kustodieva 'Odalisque'.
18 December 2006 I sent the head of the Russian department of the auction Christie `s Alexis Tizengauzenu formal letter of demand to cancel the sale and put it to him two negative examinations. No reply to my letter, I never got that quite in the style Tiesenhausen .
In December 2008, reached the correspondence of our lawyers with lawyers Christie `s, which has accumulated hundreds of pages, but it did not budge. Could not even begin meaningful negotiation. Lawyers for Christie `s constantly finding different meaningless excuses and reasons, delaying and postponing the solution of the problem, wasting your time and our money. Clearly,
challenge the auction house is to pull this thing indefinitely, so that we simply brush aside both the flies.
- Your fund has four negative findings of the main Russian experts. Is this enough to show that "Odalisque" is written not Kustodiev?
- From the perspective of a reasonable approach certainly enough. But in this case these are neither common sense nor on the ethics of doing business.
In the lawsuit of "Odalisque" the case is that under no circumstances did not admit their mistakes and as a result did not return the money. Read at the end of the auction catalog Christie `s" Terms of sale ", and in particular paragraph 5" Limited Warranty ". That's the notorious paragraph, which describes the procedure for cancellation of the sale in case of falsification of a subject of art. These rules are written in such a casuistic language that Machiavelli compared with Christie `s just a child. Nevertheless, if he broke through the ranks of obscure phrases are reduced to the fact that the provision of two expert evidence in support of forgery, Christie` s undertakes to consider the cancellation of sale. However, the question of "Odalisque" Paragraph 5, for some reason does not work. First, Christie `s demanded that the examination had been certified by the Ministry of Culture. Then he rejected the examination Petrov because he no longer works in the Tretyakov Gallery, although by this he not ceased to be an expert of the highest level. Then he rejected the expert GRC behalf Grabar on the grounds that it "restoration" center, not an expert. Further, counsel Christie `s said that they needed an opinion from the State Tretyakov Gallery as" the most serious source of knowledge and information on Kustodiev, knowing full well that at that point museums in Russia has been forbidden to do business expertise. However, we appealed to the Ministry of Culture, and such approval has been received. But the conclusion of the State Tretyakov Gallery, the same negative, as all previous, Christie `s refused to accept, citing the fact that we are themselves now in the State Tretyakov Gallery, ostensibly to" own expert ". And they could be attributed to "their", although TG is, of course, only one examination department, and all the issues there are resolved collectively.
- you mentioned in "Terms of sale" refers to the need to provide written evidence issued by two recognized experts in the relevant field, mutually acceptable to Christie `s, and for the buyer.
- We are ready to consider any candidate, but after giving expert advice from three leading Russian museums, such as the Tretyakov Gallery, Russian Museum and Center Grabar, and such well-known experts and collectors, as Pyotr Aven, Vladimir Petrov, it is difficult to imagine who would else on this planet can make a credible and competent opinion on the work of Russian artist Boris Kustodiev.
However, almost two years we're trying to obtain from Christie `s answer to the question: who are these unknown, mutually acceptable expert? and the WHO, and now there.
- What do you expect from the court?
- Confessions of a picture of a fake, cancel the transaction and return to our fund of funds spent.
But apart from that I think is important and necessary to draw attention to the working methods of the auction house Christie `s, which I think is unacceptable and an insult to the customers. Moreover, in recent years, Christie` s strongly trying to establish the primacy in Russia and former Soviet republics in connection with the rapid development of Russian art market.
Tatiana Markina
(Kommersant »№ 132 (4432) on 23.07.2010 http://www.kommersant.ru/doc.aspx?DocsID=1473572)