- Title: GREECE: Sketchbook of Van Gogh believed to have been found in Greece
- Date: 21st January 2008
- Summary: (L!2) ATHENS, GREECE (JANUARY 16 2008) (REUTERS) SCANNED PRINTOUTS OF PAGES OF NOTEBOOK WITH SKETCHES SCANNED PRINTOUT OF SKETCH IN NOTEBOOK SIGNATURE ON SKETCH SCANNED IMAGE OF NOTEBOOK CLOSED DORETA PEPPA HOLDING SCANNED PAGES OF SKETCHES INSIDE NOTEBOOK AND FRONT PAGE SCANNED PRINTOUT OF FRONT PAGE AND SKETCH INSIDE NOTEBOOK (SOUNDBITE) (Greek) PEPPA SAYING, "I didn't realize what I had. I did't recognize such things. I didn't know what he had among his (her father) possessions. I knew he ( her father) had old manuscripts, old books, but I hadn't really searched that closely." SCANNED PRINTOUT OF PAGE OF NOTEBOOK WITH SIGNED SKETCH ON IT (SOUDNBITE) (Greek) PEPPA SAYING, "Our first step was to find out if anyone was claiming it, including checking with the Treaty of Rome. There was no claim (of ownership) for this specific work of art." ANOTHER SCANNED PRINTOUT OF ANOTHER SKETCH IN THE NOTEBOOK (SOUDNBITE) (Greek) PEPPA SAYING, "The last issue here is the financial one. This work is Van Gogh's soul." STUDY WRITTEN ON THE SKETCHBOOK BY ATHANASIO CELIA FRONT PAGE OF STUDY PAGES OF STUDY WITH IMAGES FROM THE NOTEBOOK (SOUNDBITE) (Greek) ATHANASIO CELIA SAYING, "This book is a unique treasure which allows us to get into the soul of the artist. We can see how he was feeling at that time, in that decade, through the way he made his signature on each sketch, and through the contemplation he put into the sketches. He then later painted them onto canvases. This (notebook) was like a mini archive - as I say in my study - that he carried with him. " IMAGES FROM THE NOTEBOOK IN THE PAGES OF THE STUDY
- Embargoed: 5th February 2008 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Greece
- Country: Greece
- Topics: Arts / Culture / Entertainment / Showbiz
- Reuters ID: LVA6K5EW5QGOTJXJ2AV39YPJLWTV
- Story Text: A sketchbook believed to have been Vincent van Gogh's containing sketches similar to those in his most famous works has been found in Greece.
Taken by a Greek resistance fighter from a Nazi train during the second world war, the sketchbook was discovered in storage boxes by his daughter, who is seeking to establish its authenticity with the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam.
"I didn't realize what I had. I didn't recognize such things. I didn't know what he had among his possessions. I knew he had old manuscripts, old books, but I hadn't really searched that closely," said writer Doreta Peppa about stumbling across the find in her father's belongings.
Peppa said according to her father's notes, it was taken during an attack on a Nazi train retreating from Greece at the end of the German occupation.
She discovered the small brown sketchbook in boxes left in storage by her late father. A photograph of what Peppa says is the artist himself was also found.
One Greek art expert commissioned by Peppa concluded the sketches were by the Dutch post-Impressionist artist. Foreign experts would soon examine the work to rule on its authenticity, she said.
She also investigated with her lawyer if anyone was claiming the work, but said no claims had arisen and the sketchbook is now legally hers by Greek law.
"Our first step was to find out if anyone was claiming it, including checking with the Treaty of Rome. There was no claim (of ownership) for this specific work of art." she said.
The 60 page notebook includes signed sketches of faces and characters, many similar to those incorporated in van Gogh paintings and drawings, including 'The Potato Eaters', 'Sorrow' and 'Pere Tanguy'.
Greek artist and art expert Athanasio Celia, who said he has appraised other works for their authenticity including by Van Gogh, was asked by Peppa to examine the sketchbook, and believes it is authentic.
"This book is a unique treasure which allows us to get into the soul of the artist. We can see how he was feeling at that time, in that decade, through the way he made his signature on each sketch, and through the contemplation he put into the sketches. He then later painted them onto canvases. This (notebook) was like a mini archive - as I say in my study - that he carried with him. " he said.
The notebook bears the stamp of the Brussels Royal Academy of Art where van Gogh moved to in 1880, as well as a Nazi stamp.
Peppa showed Reuters scanned images of the pages of the notebook, as she keeps the original in a bank safety deposit box for security reasons.
If genuine, the notebook could fetch close to four million euros at auction.
Peppa said she was open to any expert evaluating the authenticity of the work, but had no immediate plans to sell it.
"The last issue here is the financial one. This work is Van Gogh's soul," she said. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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