"Ibiza had some special magic where these genius swindlers operated": Martin Davies investigates

Ibizology

In this episode the writer, publisher, and original Ibizologist, Martin Davies, helps us to bring alive some of the characters living in Ibiza in the 1960s. We delve deeper into the enigmatic figure of Elmyr de Hory, possibly the twentieth century’s greatest art forger. You’ll hear Martin challenge one by one what I had assumed to be the basic facts about Elmyr’s life. Next we take a look at some of the other figures surrounding Elmyr at the time. The novelist Clifford Irving, wrote the biography which catapulted Elmyr into the limelight. But Clifford was himself a faker who went to prison for writing a book which he claimed was the authorised biography of the reclusive millionaire Howard Hughes. Elmyr had a difficult relationship with his art dealer Fernand Legros who, together with his partner, Real Lessard, played a big part in Elmyr’s life. But Lessard – who is still alive - later claimed he was the artist behind many of the pictures claimed by Elmyr. We also discuss Orson Welles’ documentary “F for Fake” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gIVgUjj6RxU and François Reichenbach’s “Elmyr, The True Picture?” https://vimeo.com/84083934 Martin talks about Mark Forgy’s book “The Forger's Apprentice: Life with the World's Most Notorious Artist”. I interviewed Mark – who lived with Elmyr in Ibiza - for a recent episode of Ibizology. You can also listen to my interview with the art historian and forgery expert, Jeffrey Taylor on the Ibizology archive.