COUNTERFEIT -Sforza Horse- in the High Museum of Art's "Leonardo da Vinci: Hand of the Genius" exhibition

Updated: November 15, 2009

NOTE: Footnotes are enclosed with [FN ].

After Leonardo da Vinci, ((Italian, 1452 - 1519) Life size re-creation of the Sforza Horse, 2007

http://www.high.org/leonardo/discover-leonardo.html

Photo: http://www.artdaily.org/index.asp?int_sec=2&int_new=33679

The Sforza Horse, in the High Museum of Art's October 6, 2009 to February 2010 Leonardo da Vinci: Hands of a Genius exhibition, is -counterfeit-.

On page 354 of the Seventh Edition of Black's Law Dictionary, -counterfeit- is defined as: "to forge, copy, or imitate (something) without a right to do so and with the purpose of deceiving or defrauding."[FN 1]

This 26 foot-high non-disclosed -counterfeit- was posthumously (2007) enlarged and forged in resin from a 1/7th-scale posthumous (circa 2007) clay forgery by the Italian company -Opera Laboratori Fiorentini S.p.A.-.

On page 661 of the Seventh Edition of Black's Law Dictionary, -forgery- is defined as: "the act of fraudulently making a false document or altering a real one to be used as if genuine."[FN 2]

In 2007, Leonardo da Vinci (d 1519) was 488 years dead.

The dead don't sculpt or approve a 1/7th scale posthumous forgery in clay, much less its' posthumous enlargement in resin.

This monograph will document these contentious issues of authenticity surrounding this non-disclosed -counterfeit- titled the Sforza Horse, the High Museum of Art and the J. Paul Getty Museum's violation of their own endorsed ethical guidelines on sculptural reproduction and who actually forged it.

http://aamd.org/

WHAT ARE THOSE ETHICAL GUIDELINES?

The High Museum of Art's director Michael E. Sharpiro and the J. Paul Getty Museum's director Michael Brand, as members of the Association of Art Museum Director[FN 3], endorse the College Art Association’s "A Statement on Standards for Sculptural Reproduction and Preventive Measures to Combat Unethical Casting in Bronze."[FN 4]

http://www.collegeart.org/

ALL UNAUTHORIZED ENLARGEMENTS - ARE COUNTERFEIT

The College Art Association’s "A Statement on Standards for Sculptural Reproduction and Preventive Measures to Combat Unethical Casting in Bronze," under the subtitle "Unauthorized Translation Into New Materials," states: “All bronze casting from finished bronzes, all unauthorized enlargements, and all transfers into new materials, unless specifically condoned by the artist, all works cast as a result of being in the public domain should be considered as inauthentic or counterfeit. Unauthorized casts of works in the public domain cannot be looked upon as accurate presentations of the artist’s achievement. Accordingly, in the absence of relevant laws and for moral reasons, such works should: -- Not be acquired by museums or exhibited as works of art.”[FN 5]

SFORZA HORSE, MANUFACTURED BY THE OPERA LABORATORI FIORENTINI S.P.A.

The Sforza Horse, in the High Museum of Art's September 1, 2009 "Exhibition Featuring Work of Leonardo da Vinci to Open at High Museum in Atlanta, October 2009" press release under the subtitled "Leonardo, Sculptor," is described as follows: "The initial section of the exhibition, “Leonardo, Master Sculptor,” will feature drawings associated with Leonardo’s plans for works of sculpture, including an in-depth examination of Leonardo’s plans to create the world’s largest and most technically complex statue, a work which was to depict Duke Francesco Sforza mounted on horseback. By November of 1493, Leonardo had completed a 26-foot tall clay model of the horse alone. When war interrupted his work the planned bronze casting was halted and the clay model was subsequently destroyed. A 26-foot-high recreation of the Sforza horse, manufactured by the Opera Laboratori Fiorentini S.p.A., will be on display on the Sifly Piazza at the High."[FN 6]

The High Museum of Art is using "recreation" as an euphemism for -forgery-.

On page 114 of Webster's New World Pocket Dictionary, -euphemism- is defined as: "mild word replacing an offensive one."[FN 7]

A horse in right profile and from the front, c.1490, Leonardo da Vinci, Probably acquired by Charles II; Royal Collection by 1690, Metalpoint on blue prepared paper, 21.4 x 16 cm

http://www.royalcollection.org.uk/eGallery/object.asp?searchText=da+vinci&x=0&y=0&pagesize=20&object=912321&row=47

Photographs: http://www.artdaily.org/index.asp?int_sec=2&int_new=33679

http://www.royalcollection.org.uk/eGallery/object.asp?searchText=da+vinci&x=0&y=0&pagesize=20&object=912321&row=47

LEFT HIND LEG STEPPING FORWARD

Notice the above meticulously rendered circa 1490 drawing, by Leonardo da Vinci, has the horse's left hind leg stepping forward that mirrors the posthumously (2007) enlarged and forged in resin from a 1/7th-scale posthumous (circa 2007) clay forgery by the Italian company -Opera Laboratori Fiorentini S.p.A.-.

ROYAL COLLECTIONS PROVENANCE

The above metalpoint on blue prepared paper was drawn circa 1490 by Leonardo da Vinci. The authenticity of this Leonardo da Vinci drawing is provided by the provenance documented and posted on the Queen of England's Royal Collection's website. It states: "All the drawings and manuscripts in Leonardo’s studio at his death were bequeathed to his pupil Francesco Melzi, who took them back to his family villa near Milan. After Melzi’s death, around 1570, the collection was sold to the sculptor Pompeo Leoni (c.1533-1608), who pasted the drawings into the pages of several albums. These were dispersed some time after Leoni’s death in Madrid, and one was brought to England, probably through the agency of Thomas Howard, 2nd Earl of Arundel, who owned the album by 1630 (though there remains the possibility that it was acquired in Madrid during the visit of the future Charles I in 1623 - either by Charles or by his companion, the 1st Duke of Buckingham - and like the Holbein volume subsequently passed to Arundel). During the Civil War, Arundel left England, and there is no further trace of the Leonardo volume until 1690, when it was recorded at Whitehall Palace. How the album entered the Royal Collection is unknown, though it is most likely that it was acquired by Charles II."[FN 8]

WHAT IS PROVENANCE?

On the auction house Sotheby's www.sothebys.com website, it defines -provenance- as: "The history ownership of the property being sold. This can be an important part of the authentication process as it establishes the chain for ownership back (if possible) to the time the piece was made.”[FN 9]

PROVENANCE FOR THE SFORZA HORSE RESIN FORGERY

What is the provenance for the Sforza Horse resin forgery manufactured by Italian company Opera Laboratori Fiorentini S.p.A.?

AFTER LEONARDO DA VINCI, (ITALIAN, 1452-1519)

The High Museum of Art which did not disclose the manufacturing date of this non-disclosed forgery in their September 1, 2009 "Exhibition Featuring Work of Leonardo da Vinci to Open at High Museum in Atlanta, now in their -October 2009- press release gives the following disclosure: "After Leonardo da Vinci, (Italian, 1452 - 1519) Life size re-creation of the Sforza Horse, 2007."[FN 10]

WHAT DOES -AFTER- MEAN?

On page 8 of Harper Collins Dictionary of Art Terms & Techniques by Ralph Mayer, -after- is defined as a: "word used in an artist's inscription to indicated that his or her picture or sculpture was modeled on the work of another artist."[FN 11]

MODEL ON THE WORK OF LEONARDO DA VINCI

Since Leonardo da Vinci's original clay model was destroyed and no bronze was cast, how could the Italian company Opera Laboratori Fiorentini S.p.A.'s 21st-century clay forgery be a "model on the work of " Leonardo da Vinci's 15th-century original clay model when it does -not- exist and has not existed for almost 500 years?

WHAT SCHOLARS BELIEVE - IT MIGHT HAVE LOOKED LIKE

This devastating question is addressed on the High Museum of Art's website, under the subtitled "Sforza Horse Monument," where it states: "For more than seventeen years, from 1482 to 1499, Leonardo da Vinci worked on a spectacular monument honoring Francesco Sforza, Duke of Milan. This image is a modern re-creation of what scholars believe Leonardo’s 26-foot-high model of just the horse might have looked like. Leonardo made a model from clay and intended to cast the final sculpture in a single piece in bronze. This re-creation is assembled from six enormous pieces of special resin treated to look like bronze."[FN 12]

Should scholars, much less anyone else, substitute their judgment for a dead artist on how a posthumously enlarged forgery, much less a sculptural reproduction of their lifetime work, "might have looked like?"

http://www.collegeart.org/

POSTHUMOUS ENLARGING IS PRESUMPTUOUS & UNETHICAL

This issue on who can or cannot ethically substitute their judgment for a dead artist is further addressed by the AAMD in their endorsed College Art Association's ethical guidelines, concerning posthumous enlargement. In part, it states: “A second unethical and pernicious practice of sculptural reproduction is the enlargement of a sculptor's work by his heirs or executors or the owners of his work. Even when an artist had enlarged certain of his own works during his life, to have this done after his death to works he himself had not enlarged is presumptuous and unethical on the part of those responsible. When the artist was alive it was he who decided which works would or would not be enlarged, to what specific scale, in what medium, and whether or not proportions and details had to be changed. The sculptor often knew to whom he could entrust the process of enlargement and he alone could judge whether or not the results were successful.”[FN 13]

RECONSTRUCTED FROM LEONARDO DA VINCI MANUSCRIPTS

In the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's published September 25, 2009 "Enormous Sforza horse lifted over 70-foot wall at High Museum" article by Jamie Gumbrecht and Howard Pusner, the authors quoted a "da Vinci scholar" Andrea Bernardoni stating: "The big horse in front of the museum doesn't have to be seen as Leonardo's horse because he never made it. It is a reconstruction from his manuscripts to give the idea of the majesty and the impressiveness of his project."[FN 14]

Andrea Bernardoni is profiled on www.linkedin.com website as a "history of technology scholar at Institute and Museum of the History of Science and Research Consultant"[FN 15] in Florence, Italy.

So, if the "big horse in front of the museum," as characterized by "da Vinci scholar" Andrea Bernardoni, was "never made" by Leonardo da Vinci then who did?

This question was answered in a October 17, 2009 email from Opera Laboratori Fiorentini SpA's Laura Stiattesi.

Saturday, October 17, 2009, 8:55AM email from Opera Laboratori Fiornentini representative Laura Stiattesi

OUR LAB HAS BEEN BUSY CREATING THE SCULPTURE

The Opera Laboratori Fiornetini SpA representative Laura Stiattesi wrote: "The head of art which followed the sculpture detailed design is prof. Niccolo Niccolai, Florentine artist who still works for Opera Laboratori Fiorentini SpA. Tommaso Cannavale was the work technical manager while the undersigned has followed and directed the work in general. In order to complete the project executive's monumental sculpture, or the horse high 8 meters, we have made several preliminary studies that have produced an initial small model in bronze. From this model, once defined all details, We have produced a horse in scale 1:7. To obtain the life-size sculpture was constructed by a analog pantograph which helped to bring forms of the horse on blocks of polystyrene which were then carved. The technique is comparable to the production of sculptures in stone as was used in historical periods, from the Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Renaissance, etc.. The University of Florence, to get a digital model, has scanned (using 3D scanning) the horse in 1:7 scale. Of course, the conceptual project and the scientific studies are of the Institute and Museum of the History of Science in Florence. Our lab has been busy creating the sculpture."

U.S. COPYRIGHT LAW - WHAT IS A SCULPTURE?

Under U.S. Copyright Law 101. Definitions, a -work of visual art- ie., -sculpture- is defined as: “multiple cast, carved, or fabricated sculptures of 200 or fewer that are consecutively numbered by the author and bear the signature or other identifying mark of the author.”

WHAT IS A SCULPTOR?

This is answered in the J. Paul Getty Trust’s www.getty.edu website. Under their Getty Vocabulary Program, -sculptor- is defined as: “Artists who specialize in creating images and forms that are carried out primarily in three dimensions, generally in the media of stone, wood, or metal.”

In other words, by law and definition, sculptures are created by sculptors.

So, if Leonardo da Vinci's original 15-century Sforza Horse clay sculpture does not exist since it was destroyed some 500 years earlier and no bronze was ever cast, how in the 21st-century could Opera Laboratoria Fiornetinia SpA and Niccolo Niccolai "followed the sculpture detail design" for "creating the sculpture," much less reproduce it?

As ludicrous as that question may seem to be, the answers are even more troubling.

IV.5C.a1, Clay model for casting the horse for the Sforza monument

Reconstruction in scale of 1:7 after Leonardo da Vinci, Madrid Ms. II and Royal Collection, Windsor, 12321r; P 92r Opera Laboratori Fiorentini, The original model was destroyed by Gascon archers during the French occupation of Milan in 1499.

http://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/menteleonardo/emdl.asp?c=13419&k=13363&rif=13379&xsl=1

RIGHT HIND LEG STEPPING FORWARD

Notice the above reconstructed 1/7 scale "clay model," by Italian company Opera Laboratori Fiornentini S.p.A., has the horse's right hind leg stepping forward.

CLAY MODEL FOR CASTING THE HORSE

On the website of the Institute and Museum of the History of Science, under the subtitle "The Moulding Process," it states: "Clay model for casting the horse for the Sforza monument - Reconstruction in scale of 1:7 after Leonardo da Vinci" with "Opera Laboratori Fiorentini."[FN 16]

On page 1279 of the Seventh Edition of Black's Law Dictionary, -reconstruction- is defined as: "The act or process of building, re-creating or reorganizing something."[FN 17]

Remember, since Leonardo da Vinci's original clay model was destroyed and no bronze was cast, how could Italian company Opera Laboratori Fiorentini S.p.A.'s 21st-century clay forgery be a "model on the work of " Leonardo da Vinci when the object in question does not exist and has not existed for almost 500 years?

THE CHALLENGE OF THE SFORZA MONUMENT

In the Institute and Museum of the History of Science's "Nuncius, Journal of the History of Science," it stated that "On March 28, the film 'Leonardo's Colossus: The Challenge of the Sforza Monument,' written by Andrea Bernardoni with the advice of Paolo Galluzzi, was shown. The documentary, created by the Multimedia Laboratory and video directed by the Pesci Combattenti company, presents one of the most ambitious artistic and technological challenges of the Renaissance. Thanks to Leonardo's drawings and notes, it was possible to reconstruct the monument's molding and casting process through digital animation techniques."[FN 18]

On the Online Etymology, -Renaissance- is defined as: "great period of revival of classical-based art and learning in Europe that began 14c."[FN 19]

Additionally, on Wikipedia's website, -Renaissance- is further defined as: "French for 'rebirth' Italian: Rinascimento, from re- 'again" and that it was "a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Florence in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe."[FN 20]

So, how can this 21st-century counterfeiting in clay and the subsequent posthumous enlargement in resin, despite occurring some 400 or more years after the end of the Renaissance in the 17th-century, be "one of the most ambitious artistic and technological challenges of the Renaissance?"

[detail] A horse in right profile and from the front, c.1490, Leonardo da Vinci, Probably acquired by Charles II; Royal Collection by 1690, About this work of art, Metalpoint on blue prepared paper, 21.4 x 16 cm

http://www.royalcollection.org.uk/eGallery/object.asp?searchText=da+vinci&x=0&y=0&pagesize=20&object=912321&row=47

[detail] IV.5C.a1, Clay model for casting the horse for the Sforza monument, Reconstruction in scale of 1:7 after Leonardo da Vinci, Madrid Ms. II and Royal Collection, Windsor, 12321r; P 92r, Opera Laboratori Fiorentini, The original model was destroyed by Gascon archers during the French occupation of Milan in 1499.

http://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/menteleonardo/emdl.asp?c=13419&k=13363&rif=13379&xsl=1

CLAY FORGERY MIRRORS DA VINCI DRAWING

Notice, the Italian company Opera Laboratori Fiorentino S.p.A.'s posthumous (circa 2007) clay forgery (detail) has the right hind leg of the horse stepping forward that -reverses- or mirrors Leonardo da Vinci's circa 1490 drawing in "Metalpoint on blue prepared paper" (detail), which as noted earlier has the left hind leg of the horse stepping forward.

IV.5E.f, Leonardo da Vinci, Madrid Ms. II, 151v, Study on distribution of the furnaces along the casting pit (mold in horizontal position).

http://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/menteleonardo/emdl.asp?c=13419&k=13363&rif=13381&xsl=1

Notice the above "study on distribution of the furnaces along the casting," by Leonardo da Vinci, has the horse's left hind leg stepping forward, just like his meticulously drawn "a horse in right profile and from the front, c.1490" drawing noted earlier.

[detail] contrast enhanced 57 steps} IV.5E.f, Leonardo da Vinci, Madrid Ms. II, 151v, Study on distribution of the furnaces along the casting pit (mold in horizontal position).

http://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/menteleonardo/emdl.asp?c=13419&k=13363&rif=13381&xsl=1

[detail] IV.5C.a1, Clay model for casting the horse for the Sforza monument, Reconstruction in scale of 1:7 after Leonardo da Vinci, Madrid Ms. II and Royal Collection, Windsor, 12321r; P 92r, Opera Laboratori Fiorentini, The original model was destroyed by Gascon archers during the French occupation of Milan in 1499.

http://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/menteleonardo/emdl.asp?c=13419&k=13363&rif=13379&xsl=1

CLAY FORGERY MIRRORS ANOTHER DA VINCI DRAWING

Once again, the Italian company Opera Laboratori Fiorentino S.p.A.'s posthumous (circa 2007) clay forgery (detail) has the right hind leg of the horse stepping forward that -reverses- or mirrors Leonardo da Vinci's circa 1490 drawing in "study on distribution of the furnaces along the casting" (detail), which as noted earlier has the left hind leg of the horse stepping forward.

LEONARDO DEDICATED GREAT ATTENTION

On the Institute and Museum of Science and History's (Florence, Italy) website describing the "Smelting System" Leonardo da Vinci designed for casting his Sforza Horse, it states: "On the Making a statue of such colossal size as the Sforza monument in a single casting called for a smelting system with multiple furnaces. Leonardo dedicated great attention to studying the optimum typology for the furnaces, their location and the system of channels for feeding the mold."[FN 21]

If "Leonardo dedicated great attention to studying the optimum typology for the furnaces, their location and the system of channels for feeding the mold," these two 15th-century Leonardo da Vinci drawings would tend to support his intention to have the left hind leg stepping forward rather than the Italian company Opera Laboratori Fiorentini S.p.A.'s 21st-century mirror forgery in clay

MARVELOUS DRAWINGS OF HORSES

On the Institute and Museum of Science and History's (Florence, Italy) website, under the subtitle "IV.5B Anatomy, Drawing from Nature and Proportions," it states: "In connection with the project for the Sforza monument, Leonardo engaged in extensive research on the ideal proportions of the horse. The marvelous drawings of horses from nature reveal his concern with effectively representing the continuity between three-dimensional forms (such as those of the horse) and two-dimensional drawings. For this purpose he adopted the solution of depicting the same object from different viewing points."[FN 22]

The above drawings are some of the Leonardo da Vinci drawings posted on the Institute and Museum of Science and History's website to impress some to just believe or suspend disbelief that the Italian company Opera Laboratori Fiornetini S.p.A.'s posthumous (circa 2007) forged clay model represents "the continuity between three-dimensional forms (such as those of the horse) and two-dimensional drawings."

IV.5A.hm Leonardo da Vinci, Royal Collection, Windsor, 12345r; P 107r, Horse at a walk seen in profile. The considerations on the walking pose accompanying this drawing are in relation with the changes made in the project for the Sforza monument between 1489 and 1490.

http://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/menteleonardo/emdl.asp?c=13419&k=13363&rif=13377&xsl=1

PROJECT WAS CHANGED IN FAVOR OF A HORSE IN A WALKING POSE

The Institute and Museum of the History of Science, on their website under the subtitle "The Sforza Monument" stated: "The idea for the equestrian monument came from Galeazzo Maria Sforza, who conceived of a life-size sculptural group that would represent his father Francesco astride a rearing horse. Later on, the project was taken up again by Ludovico il Moro, who commissioned Leonardo to sculpt the monument. Between 1489 and 1490 the project was changed; the dimensions were almost quadrupled and the idea of a rearing horse was abandoned in favor of a horse in a walking pose."[FN 23]

[detail] IV.5A.hm Leonardo da Vinci, Royal Collection, Windsor, 12345r; P 107r, Horse at a walk seen in profile. The considerations on the walking pose accompanying this drawing are in relation with the changes made in the project for the Sforza monument between 1489 and 1490.

http://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/menteleonardo/emdl.asp?c=13419&k=13363&rif=13377&xsl=1

[detail] IV.5C.a1, Clay model for casting the horse for the Sforza monument, Reconstruction in scale of 1:7 after Leonardo da Vinci, Madrid Ms. II and Royal Collection, Windsor, 12321r; P 92r, Opera Laboratori Fiorentini, The original model was destroyed by Gascon archers during the French occupation of Milan in 1499.

http://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/menteleonardo/emdl.asp?c=13419&k=13363&rif=13379&xsl=1

RIGHT HIND LEG STEPPING FORWARD

Aside that it is a drawing by Leonardo da Vinci of a horse, with stubby legs and an elongated torso, done "between 1489 and 1490" that bears little resemblance to Leonardo da Vinci's meticulous rendered circa 1490 drawing, it does have the same right hind leg stepping forward as the Italian company Opera Laboratori Fiornetini S.p.A.'s 21st-century 1/7th scale clay forgery.

So, is this the Leonardo da Vinci drawing that convinced the Italian company Opera Laboratori Fiornetini S.p.A. that this was Leonardo da Vinci's vision for his "Sforza Monument?"

IV.5C.d, Leonardo da Vinci, Royal Collection, Windsor, 12346r; P 109r, Study of casting core. On the outline of the horse is shown the thickness to be removed to create the hollow space into which the bronze will be poured.

http://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/menteleonardo/emdl.asp?c=13419&k=13363&rif=13379&xsl=1

LEONARDO'S DESIRE TO MAKE THE GIGANTIC MONUMENT

The Institute and Museum of the History of Science, on their website under the subtitle "The Molding Process," states: "Leonardo’s desire to make the gigantic monument in a single casting led him to develop a molding method that would produce a casting of uniform thickness and lighter weight."[FN 24]

[detail] IV.5C.d, Leonardo da Vinci, Royal Collection, Windsor, 12346r; P 109r, Study of casting core. On the outline of the horse is shown the thickness to be removed to create the hollow space into which the bronze will be poured.

http://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/menteleonardo/emdl.asp?c=13419&k=13363&rif=13379&xsl=1

[detail] IV.5C.a1, Clay model for casting the horse for the Sforza monument, Reconstruction in scale of 1:7 after Leonardo da Vinci, Madrid Ms. II and Royal Collection, Windsor, 12321r; P 92r, Opera Laboratori Fiorentini, The original model was destroyed by Gascon archers during the French occupation of Milan in 1499.

http://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/menteleonardo/emdl.asp?c=13419&k=13363&rif=13379&xsl=1

RIGHT HIND LEG STEPPING FORWARD

Aside that this drawing by Leonardo da Vinci of a horse, with elongated torso with the left fore leg further outstretched that bears little resemblance to Leonardo da Vinci's meticulous rendered circa 1490 drawing, it does have the same right hind leg stepping forward as the Italian company Opera Laboratori Fiornetini S.p.A.'s posthumous 1/7th scale clay forgery.

Is this the Leonardo da Vinci drawing that convinced the Italian company Opera Laboratori Fiornetini S.p.A. that this was Leonardo da Vinci's vision for his "Sforza Monument?"

IV.5E.d, Leonardo da Vinci, Madrid Ms. II, 149r, Diagram for feeding the casting mold. In planning to cast the statue in the vertical position, Leonardo thought of using the legs as vent stacks for the gases produced during casting. 

http://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/menteleonardo/emdl.asp?c=13419&k=13363&rif=13381&xsl=1

LEONARDO'S DESIRE TO MAKE THE GIGANTIC MONUMENT

The Institute and Museum of the History of Science, on their website under the subtitle "The Smelting System," states: "Making a statue of such colossal size as the Sforza monument in a single casting called for a smelting system with multiple furnaces. Leonardo dedicated great attention to studying the optimum typology for the furnaces, their location and the system of channels for feeding the mold."[FN 25]

[detail] IV.5E.d, Leonardo da Vinci, Madrid Ms. II, 149r, Diagram for feeding the casting mold. In planning to cast the statue in the vertical position, Leonardo thought of using the legs as vent stacks for the gases produced during casting.

http://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/menteleonardo/emdl.asp?c=13419&k=13363&rif=13381&xsl=1

[detail] IV.5C.a1, Clay model for casting the horse for the Sforza monument, Reconstruction in scale of 1:7 after Leonardo da Vinci, Madrid Ms. II and Royal Collection, Windsor, 12321r; P 92r, Opera Laboratori Fiorentini, The original model was destroyed by Gascon archers during the French occupation of Milan in 1499.

http://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/menteleonardo/emdl.asp?c=13419&k=13363&rif=13379&xsl=1

RIGHT HIND LEG STEPPING FORWARD

Aside that this drawing by Leonardo da Vinci of a horse has left fore leg at a 90% angle and left hind leg that is stretched further back and bears little resemblance to Leonardo da Vinci's meticulous rendered circa 1490 drawing, it does have the same right hind leg stepping forward as the Italian company Opera Laboratori Fiornetini S.p.A.'s 21st-century 1/7th scale clay forgery.

Is this the Leonardo da Vinci drawing that convinced the Italian company Opera Laboratori Fiornetini S.p.A. that this was Leonardo da Vinci's vision for his "Sforza Monument?"

RED HERRING

On page 1282 of the Seventh Edition of Black's Law Dictionary, -red herring- is defined as: "An irrelevant legal or factual issue."[FN 26]

In other words, what has been, in majority, presented by the High Museum of Art, the Institute and Museum of the History of Science and others is a huge school of red herrings ie., "irrelevant factual issues" to distract the public from the reality that the so-called "Sforza Monument" on exhibit at the High Museum of Art is a 26 foot-high non-disclosed -counterfeit- that was posthumously (2007) enlarged and forged in resin from a 1/7th-scale posthumous (circa 2007) clay forgery by an Italian company -Opera Laboratori Fiorentini S.p.A.-.

HIGH'S COMMITMENT TO - BRING GREAT WORKS OF ART

Yet, in the High Museum of Art's September 1, 2009 "First Exhibition to Explore Leonardo's Significant Role in Renaissance Sculpture; Many Works Traveling to U.S. For First Time" press release, the museum director Michael E. Sharpiro is quoted: "Following in the tradition of 'Verrocchio’s David' and 'Ghiberti’s Gates of Paradise,' this exhibition underscores the High’s commitment to collaborative partnerships that promote new research, advance scholarship, support conservation and bring great works of art to Atlanta and other major U.S. cities.”[FN 27]

"Great works of art" are created by -living- artists, the dead don't sculpt.

This would have been self-evident if the High Museum of Art, much less their collaborative partner J. Paul Getty Museum, would practice what they preach. This is never more certain than when documented under Getty Research, where -counterfeit- is defined as: "forgeries (derivative objects)" with a note stating: "Reproductions of whole objects when the intention is to deceive; includes sculptures cast without the artist's permission."[FN 28]

Remember, Leonardo da Vinci (d 1519) was some 488 years dead when this so-called "Sforza Monument" was posthumous forged into clay and enlarged in resin in 2007.

The dead don't give permission.

AAMD -CODE OF ETHICS-

As current members of the Association of Art Museum Directors, the High Museum of Art's director Michael E. Shapiro and J. Paul Getty's director Michael Brand endorses the Association of Art Museum Director's "Code of Ethics," which in part states: "The position of a museum director is one of trust. The director will act with integrity and in accordance with the highest ethical principles. The director will avoid any and all activities that could compromise his/her position or the institution."[FN 29]

In other words, by exhibiting this non-disclosed counterfeit Sforza Horse for the price of admission and other monetary considerations, would the High Museum of Art's director Michael E. Sharpiro and the J. Paul Getty Museum's director Michael Brand be acting "with integrity and in accordance with the highest ethical principles?"

WHAT ARE THOSE MONETARY CONSIDERATIONS?

Aside the adult admission fee of $18 per person, the monetary support for this Leonardo da Vinci; Hands of a Genius exhibition is substantial and documented in the High Museum of Art's September 1, 2009 "Exhibition Featuring Work of Leonardo da Vinci to Open at High Museum in Atlanta, October 2009" press release. In part, it stated: "Leonardo da Vinci: Hand of the Genius” is organized by the High Museum of Art in association with the J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles, and in collaboration with the Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore and the Opificio delle Pietre Dure in Florence, Italy. The exhibition is generously supported by Lead Corporate Partner Delta Air Lines and sponsor Campanile Plaza. Support has also been provided by The Samuel H. Kress Foundation and Leonardo Society members Loraine P. Williams, Lanier-Goodman Foundation, Morgens West Foundation, and Mr. and Mrs. Gary W. Rollins, with additional support from the Atlanta Foundation. This exhibition is supported by an indemnity from the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities. Generous support for the Sforza horse is provided by Art Partners. In-kind support comes from Superior Rigging and UPS. The accompanying publication, “Leonardo da Vinci and the Art of Sculpture,” is supported by the Friends of Florence, a non-profit international foundation based in the United States. The exhibition is curated by Gary M. Radke, Dean’s Professor of the Humanities at Syracuse University and Consulting Curator of Italian Art at the High Museum of Art. Restoration of Rustici’s “John the Baptist Preaching to a Levite and a Pharisee” from the façade of the Baptistery in Florence was sponsored by the Friends of Florence."[FN 30]

EXHIBITION IS SUPPORTED BY AN INDEMNITY

In other words, this 26 foot-high non-disclosed -counterfeit- Sforza Horse that was posthumously (2007) enlarged and forged in resin from a 1/7th-scale posthumous (circa 2007) clay forgery by an Italian company -Opera Laboratori Fiorentini S.p.A.- is being insured by the American public through the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities.

http://www.nea.gov/

WHAT IS THE NATIONAL COUNCIL ON THE ARTS?

Within the National Endowment for the Arts, listed under Section 955. National Council on the Arts, there is a “National Council on the Arts” referred to as the “Council.” In part, the Council’s responsibilities are to “make recommendations to the [NEA] Chairperson concerning - whether to approve particular applications for financial assistance” and whether it has “artistic excellence and artistic merit.”[FN 31]

Furthermore, under Section 972. Items eligible for indemnity agreements (a), it states: “The Council may make a indemnity agreement under this chapter with respect to - 1) works of art, including tapestries, paintings, sculpture, folk art, graphics and craft arts.”[FN 32]

So, unless this Sforza Horse was exempt from this indemnification, indemnifying an obvious posthumous forgery, much less a reproduction, would be a direct violation of the National Endowment of the Arts' Section 972.

LAW, ETHICS AND THE VISUAL ARTS

On page 816-817 of Kluwer Law International’s published 1998 Law, Ethics and the Visual Arts, Third Edition by John Henry Merryman and Albert E. Elsen wrote about “Counterfeit Art.”[FN 33]

TRUTH

Under the subtitle “Truth,” the authors wrote: “The most serious harm that good counterfeits do is to confuse and misdirect the search for valid learning. The counterfeit objects falsifies history and misdirects inquiry.”[FN 34]

RESOURCE ALLOCATION

Additionally, under the subtitle “Resource Allocation,” the authors wrote: “Museum and art historical resources are always limited. What gets acquired, displayed, conserved and studied is the result of a continuous process of triage, in which some objects can be favoured only at the expenses of others. Counterfeit objects distort the process.”[FN 35]

FRAUD

Finally, under the subtitle “Fraud,” the authors wrote: “There remains the most obvious harm of all: counterfeit cultural objects are instruments of fraud. Most are created in order to deceive and defraud, but even “innocent” counterfeits can, and often will, be so used. The same considerations of justice and social order that make deliberate fraud of others kinds criminal apply equally to fraud through the medium of counterfeit art...”[FN 36]

CONCLUSION

What needs to be accomplished is the full and honest disclosure of all reproductions as -reproductions- by all museums, auction houses and art dealers. If the High Museum of Art, much less J. Paul Getty Museum, will give full and honest disclosure for all reproductions as: -reproductions- it would allow museum patrons to give informed consent on whether they wish to attend an exhibit of reproductions, much less pay the price of admission.

But if these objects are not reproductions by definition and law, but posthumous -forgeries- with or without counterfeit signatures or inscriptions posthumously applied to create the illusion the artist created it, much less approved and signed it, then serious consequences of law may come into play for those who chose to misrepresent these -forgeries- for profit.

The reputations and legacy of living and past artists, present and future museum art patrons and the art-buying public deserve the re-establishment of the obvious; that the living presence and participation of the artist to once again be required, as it always should have been, to create the piece of art attributable to the artist if indeed it is attributed to them, much less purported to have been signed by them.

PRINCIPALS:

1) Michael E. Shapiro

Nancy and Holcombe T. Green, Jr. Director

High Museum of Art

1280 Peachtree Street, N.E.

Atlanta, Georgia 30309

404-733-4444

2) Michael Brand

Director

J. Paul Getty Museum

1200 Getty Center Drive

Los Angeles, CA 90049–1679

(310) 440-7300

3)Institute and Museum of the History of Science

Piazza dei Giudici, 1

50122 Florence, Italy 

39 055 265 311

4) National Endowment for the Arts

1100 Pennsylvania Ave. NW

Washington, DC 20506

202.682.5400

5) Gary M. Radke

Dean’s Professor of the Humanities at Syracuse University

Department of Art and Music Histories

308 Bowne Hall

Syracuse, N.Y. 13244-1200

(315) 443-4184

FOOTNOTES:

1) Copyright © 1999 by the West Group, ISBN 0-314-22864

2) Ibid

3) http://www.aamd.org/about/

4) www.collegeart.org/caa/ethics/sculpture.html

5) Ibid

6)http://www.high.org/main.taf?erube_fh=erblog&erblog.submit.PostDetail=true&erblog.blogid=31&erblog.BlogPostID=859

7) Copyright © 2000 by IDG Books Worldwide, Inc. ISBN 0-7645-6147-2

8)http://www.royalcollection.org.uk/eGallery/object.asp?searchText=da+vinci&x=0&y=0&pagesize=20&object=912321&row=47

9) http://www.sothebys.com/help/ref/ref_liveterms.html#c9

10) 21) http://www.high.org/leonardo/discover-leonardo.html

11) Copyright © 1991 by Bena Mayer, ISBN 0-06-461012-8 (pbk.)

12) http://www.high.org/leonardo/discover-leonardo.html

13) www.collegeart.org/caa/ethics/sculpture.html

14) http://www.accessatlanta.com/atlanta-events/enormous-sforza-horse-lifted-146830.html

15)http://www.linkedin.com/pub/andrea-bernardoni/3/311/734

16)http://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/menteleonardo/emdl.asp?c=13419&k=13363&rif=13379&xsl=1

17) Copyright © 1999 by the West Group, ISBN 0-314-22864

18) http://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/nuncius/enln.asp?c=24215

19)http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=renaissance&searchmode=none

20) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renaissance

21)http://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/menteleonardo/emdl.asp?c=13419&k=13363&rif=13381&xsl=1

22)http://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/menteleonardo/emdl.asp?c=13419&k=13363&rif=13378&xsl=1

23)http://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/menteleonardo/emdl.asp?c=13419&k=13363&rif=13377&xsl=1

24)http://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/menteleonardo/emdl.asp?c=13419&k=13363&rif=13379&xsl=1

25)http://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/menteleonardo/emdl.asp?c=13419&k=13363&rif=13381&xsl=1

26) Copyright © 1999 by the West Group, ISBN 0-314-22864

27)http://www.high.org/main.taf?erube_fh=erblog&erblog.submit.PostDetail=true&erblog.blogid=31&erblog.BlogPostID=859

28)http://www.getty.edu/vow/AATFullDisplay?find=counterfeit&logic=AND&note=&english=N&prev_page=1&subjectid=300121305

29) http://aamd.org/about/#Code

30)http://www.high.org/main.taf?erube_fh=erblog&erblog.submit.PostDetail=true&erblog.blogid=31&erblog.BlogPostID=859

31) http://codes.lp.findlaw.com/uscode/20/26/I/955

32) Ibid

33) © Kluwer Law International 1998, ISBN 90-411-0697-9

34) Ibid

35) Ibid

36) Ibid