L’arte del falso - Autoritratto – Beltracchi Helene a Wolfgang (2025)

An autobiography that reads like a novel: the gripping tale of the most famous art forger of our time, a thriller about the global art market, and, at the same time, an extraordinary love story.

Wolfgang Beltracchi, a genius of painting forgery, recounts his adventurous life: from his wandering beginnings to the refinement of a technique capable of deceiving critics, experts, and the most prestigious auction houses. His paintings, conceived in the style of masters like Max Ernst, André Derain, and Heinrich Campendonk, were not mere copies, but new creations intended to fill the 'gaps' left in the works of the artists themselves. Each painting was accompanied by a carefully constructed story, so persuasive that it seemed irrefutable even to the most experienced eyes.

Alongside his voice intertwines that of Helene, his partner and muse, who accompanied him in the endeavor, helping to introduce those works into the heart of the international market. Their name exploded in 2011 with the most sensational scandal of modern art forgeries ever to emerge.

Today, having freed himself from the shadow of the past, Wolfgang Beltracchi has established himself...