F is for Fake

 Over the weekend I watched the film "F is for Fake". This was Orsen Well's last film and it follows the lives of Elmyr de Hory and Clifford Irving. Both men were famous for creating "fake" pieces. Elmyr de Hory was known for creating and selling fake artwork said to be by famous painters. Clifford Irving was known for writing a fake autobiography about Howard Hughes. What I found most fascinating about this film was the concept. We of course are following two people who are notorious for faking things, but it is through the lens of a film director. Orsen Wells certainly doesn't fake his work, but in theory the job of a director is to create movies which are fake. All three of these men are famous in their own right for creating something that could be considered fake. 

This opens up a philosophical question which is whether or not something can be "fake". Every single great piece of art whether it be physical or digital, was inspired by something. I just recently listened to an album that came out last month in which the artist clearly took a lot of inspiration from Pink Floyd. So is he copying or is it fake? I don't believe so. All in all, I believe that taking someone else’s art and advertising it as real is an issue, but the word "fake" can be hard to define.