After visiting AMERICAN FINE ART EDITIONS, INC in Scottsdale, my wife and I decided to order two pieces we'd seen there. They said both pieces were signed and numbered lithogrpahs.
A lower-numbered litho is of better quality due to the way it is printed. Better quality means higher selling price. This is why lower numbered lithos can cost a lot more than higher numbered lithos.
When we received them I noticed that one of the pieces didn't look right. I thought I had some kind of forgery on my hands. AFA attempted to allay my fears.
I investigated further and found out that the artist had scanned in one of his previous works and Photoshopped in a different background. But... He forgot to past in a portion of the new background!
Then he printed it out on a canvas using a laser printer - a process referred to as glicee. Glicee do not vary in quality, therefore they don't vary in price (at least shouldn't). A glicee is a completely different animal than a litho.
I contacted the artist via email through his publicist. The artist referred to this as an "experimental" work. He slapped the thing together in Photoshop and printed it out on an inkjet printer. Fine. He created a cheap poster, not an expensive litho like I was lead to believe.
But wait, here's the incredible part. I contacted the BBB about this. AFA claims they never said it was a litho. All reputable galleries send a "certificate of authenticity" with any piece they sell which states what medium the piece was created in.
AFA refused to send me a certificate of authenticity. When the BBB's Erin Pecora demanded to know what the piece was, AFA told her it was a "mixed media" - which is a nebulous and meaningless term - and incorrect - the thing is a glicee.
I asked Erin if she could get AFA to put their "appraisal" in writing and they *never* returned her call. They *never* returned repeated requests from the BBB. That speaks volumes about what type of fraudulant place AFA really is.
At this point, the BBB could go no further with the case, since they are not in any way part of law enforcement, they can't force places like AFA to cough up incriminating information. The case was marked unresolved.
In summation,
True fine art galleries *always* supply a certificate of authenticity with any work they sell.
True fine art galleries *always* take back a piece if the customer is not satisfied with it.
True fine art galleries would stick needles in their eyes rather than "dis" the BBB.
They pulled a bait and switch number on me and they will on anyone else who has the misfortune of stumbling into their gallery or website.
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