Asshole of the year: Jezabel Dabouis

If you watched the scam jurying at the Olympics,  it brought back memories of when the Soviet block judges used to screw all other athletes...

Jezabel Dabouis: fuck you!

Art Scam Alert!

Beware of this ASSWIPE trying to rip off artists - this is the oldest "check" scam alive, because banks will cash the check, and then once it bounces, will take the money away from your account.  She has been reported to Gmail and the FBI task force.

From: Lilly Gibbs -- prettylilly010@gmail.com 

I have been on the lookout for some artworks lately in regards to my step-daughters wedding which is just around the corner. I stormed onto some of your works which I found quite impressive and intriguing. I must admit you're doing quite an impressive job. You are undoubtedly good at what you do. 

With that being said, I would like to purchase some of yours as a surprise gift for my daughter in honor of her upcoming wedding ceremony. It would be of help if you could send some pictures of your piece of work, with their respective prices and sizes, which are ready for Immediate ( or close to immediate) sales. My budget for this is within the range of $1000 to $7000. 

I look forward to reading from you in order to know more about your pieces of inventory. As a matter of importance, I would also like to know if you could accept a check as a matter of payment. Check clears and you have funds ready before pickup commences, I can only pay with a check at the moment as my daughter handles the bank cards and electronic transactions from time to time. 

Art Scam Alert!

Beware of this asswipe trying to scam artists!

From: Marc Boynton -- marcboyntonn@gmail.com

Your products! It's amazing how unique they are. So I was wondering if you ship to Switzerland and accept credit cards. You contact my shipper, who handles all of my shipments, as I live in a rural area, and they help in picking up items from your location.

Marc Boynton.

Art Scam Alert!

Beware of this asswipe trying to rip off artists:

From: Lozano Kim - kimlozano576@gmail.com -

Hi there, I'm interested in buying some piece of your artwork. Could you please share some more information about them? I look forward to your response.

Art Scam Alert!

Beware of this asswipe trying to rip off artists:

From: Sarah SM McCain - mccainsarahsm@gmail.com - 

​Hello,I just want to reach out and let you know how much I admire your artworks ,I stumbled upon your online gallery and was immediately captivated by the beauty of your arts .

I would like to know if they are up for sales, I would love to purchase some

Art Scam Alert!

Be aware of this scammer:

From: Taryn Ross -- tarynross47@gmail.com --

Hello,

Your art really resonates with me, and I’d love to inquire about availability and purchasing options. Please let me know if any pieces are available!

Art Scam Alert!

Be aware of this asswipe trying to scam artists:

From: Scott Carson -- scottcarson2906@gmail.com --​

Hello,I came across your profile on my feeds and I must say you're such a talented artist and I'll like to support you by purchasing some of your arts digitally, honestly this is so great and I'm really impressed with your kind of art 🎨

Art Scam Alert!

Beware of this scam pretending to come from the well-known auction house:

From: Clientservicesnewyorkphillips  - clientservicesnewyorkphillips@gmail.com -

Subject: PHILLIPS AUCTION PROPOSAL

Greetings! We hope this message finds you well. This is the Phillips Auction Team reaching out to express our admiration for your exceptional artwork. Over time, we have closely followed your creative journey and have been thoroughly impressed by the depth and quality of your work. 

After careful consideration, we are excited to extend an invitation to collaborate with you. We believe your unique artistic vision aligns seamlessly with our mission to showcase and celebrate outstanding talent. 

To learn more about Phillips Auction House, please visit our website [https://www.phillips.com/

You may also explore our social media pages for further insights into our initiatives and community. Once you’ve had the opportunity to review our platform, we would be delighted to hear your thoughts and discuss how we can work together.

We look forward to your response and the possibility of collaborating with you.

[Phillips Auction Team]

Art Scam Alert!

Beware of this mutant trying to rip off artists!

Alexandra - alexandra345654@gmail.com

Hello,

I discovered your artwork on artbuy and I'm impressed by your talent. I'm currently curating pieces for a project and would like to inquire about the availability and pricing of certain works from your portfolio. I eagerly await your response.

Thank you.

Art Scam Alert!

Beware of this scammer trying to rip off artists!

From: Dorothy Ortiz - dorothyortiz864@gmail.com -

I recently found your work, and I’m beyond impressed by your artistry. I’d love to inquire about available pieces for my collection.

Let me know if we can discuss further—I’d be delighted to connect!

Best wishes.

Art Scam Alert!

Beware of the below asswipe trying to rip off artists!

From: Lisa Martinez -- martinezlisa269@gmail.com --

Hello,

I discovered your artwork on artbuy  and I'm impressed by your talent. I'm currently curating pieces for a project and would like to inquire about the availability and pricing of certain works from your portfolio. I eagerly await your response.

Thank you.

Art Scam Alert!

 Beware of this asswipe trying to rip off artists:

From: ministerpeg@mail.com

​Hello there.

I came across some  of your art piece online and I feel in love with your work and talent. You deserve to be seen and known on a global level, and I can help your with that.

But first i would love to purchase some of your art work on behalf of my clients. I have notable art lovers and collectors like Steve Cohen on my clients list.

My clients are always willing to pay a fortune for an art piece that resonate with them and some of your art work fit into the kind of art work my client likes.

So kindly send some of your available art work or a link to a website so I can see more of your work and have them sent to my clients.

kindly reach me with the details below

Email: art_piece@collector.org

Phone: +13105644618(text only)

I will be looking forward to a response from you.

Best regards.

Art Scam Alert!

Beware of this asswipe trying to rip off artists:

From: Barbara Flower -- barbaraflower1327@gmail.com

Hello,

          My Name is Barbara Flower from (FLORIDA). I actually observed my Husband has been viewing your website on my laptop and i guess he likes your pieces of works. I'm also impressed and amazed to have seen your various works too,  You are doing a Great job. I would like to Purchase Two of your ORIGINAL ARTWORKS AVAILABLE FOR SALE IN YOUR STUDIO AT MOMENT, as a surprise to my Husband on our Wedding Anniversary. Also, let me know if you accept CHECK as mode of Payment.

Thanks and best regards

Barbara.

Art Scam Alert!!!

And yet another asswipe trying to scam artists - Be careful out there!

Corrol Elizabeth - elizabethcorrol86@gmail.com

Hello,I just want to reach out and let you know how much I admire your artworks ,I stumbled upon your online gallery and was immediately captivated by the beauty of your arts .

I would like to know if they are up for sales, I would love to purchase some.

Another Art Scam Alert!

The scammers are on overdrive!  Be wary of this garbage trying to rip off artists!

Griffin Hayden --  haydengriffin053@gmail.com

​

I am speechless by seeing this masterpiece i would love to buy few pieces of your artwork collection, do get back to me on how to acquire them.

Art Scam Alert!

Another mutant trying to rip off artists!

Lucy Bronze - lucybronze130@gmail.com -

​

Hi, How’s it going? I recently found your work and it left an impression on me. I’ll like to purchase some. Please let me know your thoughts.

Art Scam Alert!

Beware of this asswipe trying to rip off artists:

From: Jordan Bushell - jordanbushell6@gmail.com -

​Your collections are unique and amazing; I'd like to know if you ship to Switzerland. Do you accept credit cards as a mode of payment? And do you accept pickups from your location by my shipping agent? Please advise.

Thank you.

Jordan Bushell

Art Scam Alert!

Beware of this asswipe trying to rip off artists!

Subj: Inquiry About Art Purchase and Shipping

Carlos Ramirez<affordable.stores55@gmail.com>

Hello

I hope this email finds you well.

I am interested in purchasing some of your art collections and would like them shipped to the Bahamas. Kindly let me know if you accept Visa, MasterCard, or cheque as payment methods. Additionally, I would like to confirm if you can coordinate with my shipping agent for the pickup of the items.

I look forward to your prompt response.

Best regards,

Carlos Ramirez

Founder/CEO

Affordables Stores LTD

As I've noted many times before, Michele Banks is one of the hardest working and most talented DMV area artists that I know.  And she goes Terminator on art scams, which are one of my fave subjects - click here if you want to read the vast collection of them that I've accumulated over the years!

Here's Michele on the subject:

The Subtle Scam

Artists, beware of these "opportunities"

This week I got a message on LinkedIn from a gallery offering to project my artwork on a dome at a major art fair. Sure, sounds cool! But my Spidey scam senses were tingling, because the message said nothing about my work or where the gallerist had seen it, which meant this invitation had likely been sent blind to thousands of artists. So I started digging through the gallery’s website, eventually unearthing the expected nugget of dung. The “invitation” was for me to submit jpegs of 30 of my paintings to be projected for five minutes total, for which I would pay $5,000. Want ten minutes? They’ll give you a deal, only $9,500.  BRB, gotta retrieve my eyeballs from where they rolled across the floor. “Artist opportunities” like this one abound. They’re not full-on scams like the ones where thieves try to get you to share your bank details or sell you a booth in a festival that doesn’t exist. Instead, they’re what I call scam-adjacent: models that are set up to extract value from artists while giving very little in return. Here are a few to look out for.   Contests Art contests can be appealing for several reasons – they’re usually free to enter and they offer the possibility of winning prizes and getting your work seen by big brands. But most of them are a bad deal for artists, for several reasons: a) because artists must often create new work to fit the contest theme, b) because the odds of being chosen are terrible, and c) because in many cases, artists sign away the rights to their artwork when they enter.   My friend Maki Naro brilliantly summed up the hazards of art contests and other types of “spec work” in this comic. Click through and read the whole thing, it’s worth your time. A caveat: although contests sponsored by big brands are worthless for most artists, smaller contests for specific types of art, where the organizers give cash awards and prominently feature many of the entries, can be great.  And some major contests, like Wildlife Photographer of the Year and Nikon Small World, are truly prestigious. My advice for artists:  read the contest terms carefully, think hard before producing new work just for a contest entry, and check online to see if previous winners have been properly credited and promoted. Feature Articles There’s a well-known company that produces free feature articles about artists and other creative people. Sounds great, right?  The catch: You do the whole thing yourself. They send you a standard set of questions and publish your answers verbatim, along with some images of your work. Besides the lack of editing, the real problem here is that they don’t distribute or promote the articles at all - they expect artists to send them to their email lists and post them on social media. In other words, the model relies entirely on artists to create both the content and the audience for it, while the publisher collects the clicks and sells the email addresses. And that, my friends, is a pretty lousy deal. The “Prestigious Collector” Grift Playing on the fantasy that an esteemed collector will see your artwork and be bowled over by it, this little scamlet is breathtaking in its audacity. Artists are invited to apply for the opportunity to have their work collected by a famous art collector. One example: artists pay $50 to enter three pieces, creating a pool of entries from which the collector will purchase a piece with a value of up to $10,000 for his collection. In other words, 200 poor people pitch in to buy a painting for a rich guy. this works out for exactly two people out of 201 – the collector, who gets a free painting, and one artist who essentially wins a lottery. Just say no. Pay-to-Play Galleries and Art Fairs It’s tough to generalize about these types of opportunities, because there’s a huge spectrum here, from perfectly legit to deeply shady. The legitimate ones offer artists a chance to display and sell their work in exchange for upfront payment, as opposed to the traditional gallery model of commission on art sales. This can be a practical alternative for artists who are good at selling their own work, or who just want to get their art on a wall somewhere without running the gauntlet of rejections. Where it gets murky: the many “galleries” with fancy names that invite unknown artists to exhibit with them, sometimes at a fair, often in another country. This is, of course, flattering to artists who don’t often get these kinds of opportunities. Several emails later, the artist accepts the invitation, at which point the gallery sends a bill for thousands of dollars in exhibition fees. Beware, beware, of any invitation where they won’t tell you the costs upfront. When in doubt, ask explicitly what expenses the artist is expected to cover.  A legitimate organization will have no problem telling you. One that avoids giving you a direct answer is a big red flag.  And now a word about Michele - when I told you that she's a super hard-working artist, I was not kidding! You can find her art at the following venues coming up! Glen Echo Holiday Show and Sale - She’ll have a small selection of watercolors, scarves and ties for sale at this show, which runs from November 23 - January 5 Dupont Circle Holiday Pop-up - She’ll be there Saturday, December 7 only District Bridges Holly Jolly Holiday Market - December 14, Logan Circle And as always, if you can’t make it in person, you can shop online

The art of the Art Scam

If you get an email out of nowhere, about someone who admires your work, or who noticed his wife looking at your artwork on your website, etc. and wants to buy your art, be suspicious and immediately do a search for the email address and you’re likely to find warnings all over Al Gore’s Internets about the scam.

Read the whole article here.