Fakes and Forgeries

a webinar with Special Agent Christopher McKeogh from the FBI’s Art Crime division


Thursday, November 17, 2022 at 1:00 PM ET

The rise of fakes and forgeries in the artworld is of particular concern to art historians and custodians of art historical archives. Especially with the increasing availability of archival information online, many are concerned that criminals have more access than ever to “recipes” for how to create a convincing fake. But does the availability of such information correlate to an increase of these art crimes? What artists are particularly vulnerable to these attempts, and to what extent should art historians and archives “safeguard” art historical information from potential misuse by the public?

The WPI was pleased to host Special Agent Christopher McKeogh from the Art Crime division of the FBI. SA McKeogh gave a presentation on some of the notable cases he’s seen in recent times, what to look out for, and what art world experts can do to fight back against these fraudulent activities.

This event was not recorded.

Christopher McKeogh is a former university science professor and possesses two Master’s Degrees in Physics. As a Special Agent with the FBI, he has more than 19 years’ experience working National Security, Financial Crime, and Art Crime investigations. Currently, SA McKeogh exclusively investigates art crime matters in the Transnational Organized Crime branch of the FBI’s New York Office. His efforts have led to the arrest and conviction of numerous art crime perpetrators resulting in the disruption/dismantlement of several international criminal syndicates, as well as the recovery of thousands of works of art, from antiquity to modern, valued in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

This event was moderated by Elizabeth Gorayeb, Executive Director of the Wildenstein Plattner Institute, Inc. 


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