Winnetka Man Misled Into Buying Unsigned, Expensive Artwork

A Winnetka man says he was misled into buying a $1,050 piece of art that wasn’t signed by the artist.

A flier for an “Urgent Divorce Auction” coming to Winnetka caught the attention of Roy Berlin, but later realized the “limited edition” Marc Chagall he bought wasn’t really signed by him and amounted to a “high-priced poster,” according to the Winnetka Talk.

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“When I picked up the print, it seemed very light,” Berlin said. “Then when I discovered the frame wasn’t wood, but actually molded plastic, my antenna started beeping and I thought, ‘Ah, I’ve been had.’ “

Berlin was able to stop payment on the check he wrote, returned the piece of artwork and filed a complaint with Winnetka police. But law enforcement officials and art experts both tell the Talk it’s unlikely anything illegal occurred because a “certificate of authenticity” Berlin received with his print of Chagall’s “Bella” identifies it as a “rendition of original artwork” and a “reproduction.”

more via the Winnetka Talk