Works by Van Gogh, Caravaggio, Lowry, Picasso and Banksy appear to be on show at a new exhibition at the Washouse and Parlour Gallery on The Strand in Rye.
They’re all the work of the man regarded as the world’s number one art forger David Henty, whose work now also includes a fake Banksy on the old bank on Rye High Street.
Speaking at the show’s launch on Thursday September 18 he says he learnt to paint during a five-year jail sentence for forging passports. “To start with I gave my pictures to my brothers to sell at Bermondsey Market, but when I came out I started taking commissions.”
There are almost thirty pictures on show at the gallery, showing off the variety of his work. “I get fascinated by an artist’s style and work on it for a while before moving on,” he says. “You can’t just knock out a Caravaggio or a Modigliani.”
Anyone he can’t do? “Freda Kahlo. I just can’t get it.” What about his own work and his own style? “I tried but nobody buys them.”
David Henty’s story fascinates Washouse & Parlour Gallery owner Wendy Bowker who served as a prison officer for ten years. “It adds a layer of emotional resonance, making the exhibition not just a display of skill, but a conversation starter on second chances.”
She says the exhibition mixes the familiar with the challenging. “It was really important to include Van Gogh and the others people will recognise. I’ve been surprised by the interest in the Lowrys – I thought it was just a northern thing.”
The exhibition continues until October 10. There’s a screening of Derek Jarman’s Caravaggio along with a Q&A at Kino Rye on Thursday October 16.
http://www.washouseandparlour.com/
Image Credits: Washouse Gallery , James Stewart , David Mcloughlin , David McLoughlin .