Portrait of an unknown lady : a novel / María Gainza ; translated from the Spanish by Thomas Bunstead.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Gainza, María, 1975- author.

Contributor:

Bunstead, Thomas, translator.

Standardized Title:

Luz negra. English

Language:

English

Spanish

Subjects (All):

Lydis, Mariette, 1887-1970--Fiction.

Lydis, Mariette.

Lydis, Mariette, 1887-1970.

Art--Forgeries--Fiction.

Art.

Art--Forgeries.

Art critics.

Appraisers.

Argentina.

Appraisers--Fiction.

Art critics--Fiction.

Argentina--Fiction.

Genre:

Fiction.

Detective and mystery fiction.

Novels.

Mystery fiction.

Physical Description:

177 pages ; 22 cm

Place of Publication:

New York : Catapult, 2022.

Language Note:

In English, translated from the Spanish.

Summary:

"In the Buenos Aires art world, a master forger has achieved legendary status. Rumored to be a woman, she specializes in canvases by the painter Mariette Lydis, a portraitist of Argentinean high society. But who is this absurdly gifted creator of counterfeits? What motivates her? And what is her link to the community of artists who congregate, night after night, in a strange establishment called the Hotel Melancólico? On the trail of this mysterious forger is our narrator, an art critic and auction house employee through whose hands counterfeit works have passed. As she begins to take on the role of art-world detective, adopting her own methods of deception and manipulation, she warns us "not to proceed in expectation of names, numbers or dates... My techniques are those of the impressionist." Driven by obsession and full of subtle surprise, Portrait of an Unknown Lady is a highly seductive and enveloping meditation on what we mean by "authenticity" in art, and a captivating exploration of the gap between what is lived and what is told"-- Amazon.com.

Notes:

"First published in Spain in 2018 by Editorial Anagrama"--Title page verso.

Local Notes:

Athenaeum copy: Gift of Joan Detz.

ISBN:

1646220323

9781646220328

OCLC:

1258219883