Trust MSCHF to make mischief as only MSCHF can. If you managed that tongue-twister, then let’s move on to their latest antic, which could be their best so far, undoubtedly! Yes, it beats the act of filling a Chanel no. 5 bottle with Axe perfume instead and is even crueler than shredding Birkin bags worth $76,000 to make Birkenstock sandals. MSCHF bought an original Andy Warhol for $20K. Then with the exacting assistance of a robot, they created identical drawings of the original by Warhol. This, combined with some simple treatments to the sketching paper, they arranged to make it appear dated. Akin to the original work by the leading artist of the 1960s Pop art movements, MSCHF now boasts a winner. Or maybe 999 winners!
The mischief certainly didn’t end with the recreation of the valuable artwork. It went ahead to mix the original with the 999 copies to make a ‘Museum of Forgeries’ that includes a measly 0.01% chance of buying an original Warhol for a fraction of its actual value. The paintings are now on sale for $250 each, and if you’re a connoisseur belonging to the lucky lot in life, you might land an original Andy Warhol for a minuscule $250 or a fake that’s startlingly close to the real thing and worth the price.
According to Boss Hunting, MSCHF explained, “the capital- A art world is far more concerned with authenticity than aesthetics, as proven time and again by conceptual works sold primarily as paperwork and documentation.” They added, “Artwork provenance tracks the life and times of a particular piece–a record of ownership, appearances, and sales. An entire sub-industry of forensic and investigative conservation exists for this purpose. By forging Fairies en masse, we obliterate the trail of provenance for the artwork. Though physically undamaged, we destroy any future confidence in the veracity of the work. By burying a needle in a needle stack, we render the original as much a forgery as any of our replications.”
[Via: Designboom]
