Portrait of Deceit

By Jayme H. Mansfield

Description:

When an anonymous collector approaches the Richard Museum in Washington, DC, with a possible Modigliani portrait, art authentication expert Olivia Danford is called in. Her talents investigating pieces for museums, universities, and private collectors provide a retreat from a past she’d rather forget. But the chemical analysis and mysterious provenance of The Girl in White reveal much more than what lies beneath the layers of paint. Olivia is drawn back into her past, where she must decide if a half-truth is still a whole lie . . . and if a lie eventually reveals the truth.

Book Takeaway:

Portrait of Deceit, a literary suspense, is an entanglement of truth and deceit. It is steeped in art history and the intriguing world of art forgery. It is literary in that the language is sensory and emotive—taking the reader on an intimate and introspective journey with the protagonist. It is suspenseful in that there is much at stake to decipher truth from lies, fact from fiction, and what really lies beneath the layers of the paint.

Why the author wrote this book:

Portrait of Deceit was a patient story—steadily growing over the course of several years, nourished by a unique friendship with a shared love for art, sprinkled with story-related travel and solid research, and soaked with imagination. The story seed for Portrait of Deceit landed on fertile ground when I heard Dr. Colette Loll, founder of Art Fraud Insights, lecture in Colorado about art forgery. I listened to her share about notorious art forgers and her unique specialization to investigate, prevent, and educate about these prolific criminal entrepreneurs. I was captivated—so much that I introduced myself to Colette after the presentation, told her I was a fiction writer and was already composing a story in my head and suggested we could talk further. Two years later, with her business card coaxing me from my bulletin board next to my writing desk, I picked up the phone and called. The initial discussion confirmed that Colette is not only passionate about her work, but the crème de la crème in the world of art fraud . . . on the good side that is!