Description

The famed art forger Han van Meegeren found Nazism quite appealing. He made paintings for the occupation government and proudly dedicated these works to Hitler at public exhibitions. Deceit, wrath, and treachery were like second nature... The American historian Jonathan Lopez is working on a biography of Han van Meegeren that is scheduled to appear in two years' time. In the course of his research, Lopez has discovered large numbers of previously unknown documents that cast a revealing light on Van Meegeren's personality, on his work as an artist and forger, and on his relationships--for instance, with prominent members of the Liberal State Party, one of whom, Gerard A. Boon was duped into acting as a strawman for Van Meegeren in the sale of forgeries. The notorious investigation into Van Meegeren's wartime collaboration--part of the complex and disorderly postwar purge process--has always been surrounded by riddles. The central question was to what extent Van Meegeren really embraced Nazi ideology. In the article below, Lopez reveals that Van Meegeren's sympathies were far browner than has generally been assumed. -- De Groene, 29 september 2006