Long Island art dealer Glafira Rosales was arraigned this week in court, pleading “not guilty” to charges of selling over sixty fraudulent art works claimed to be by post-war masters Mark Rothko, Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning, among others.  The prosecution also accused Rosales of hiding the proceeds (over $12.5 million in undeclared incomes) of the sales in foreign sales accounts. (more…)

A recurring theme of late for American museums has been that of repatriation, with several major institutions announcing that they will return ancient works to foreign countries claiming that the works were theirs.  However, many critics and museum employees posit that these claims on ancient art are often little more than extortion, and that the claims do little more than starve the cultural offering of museums and institutions around the globe, all while ignoring key issues of theft and looting.  “Has any of this affected the real evil, which is looting?” asks Stephen Urice, a cultural property lawyer at the University of Miami. “From what I see, it’s getting worse.” (more…)