Falsificação de obras de arte: conceituação, contexto histórico, paradoxos de gestão e desafios no sistema de autenticação

Abstract

This research investigated art forgery as a systemic phenomenon, analyzed its contradictions within the artistic field, and proposed strategies to address the issue in the Brazilian context. Starting from the conceptualization of the phenomenon and the genealogy of the debate, it identified the persistence of epistemological gaps and the lack of transparency, which perpetuate the problem in a scenario of still fragile and insufficient academic production and regulation, especially in Brazil. Based on this analysis, the study sustained the hypothesis that forgery, as an observable process with identifiable patterns and causes, should not be reduced to a marginal phenomenon, but rather understood as a symptom of contradictions inherent to the system of art valuation, resulting from the fetishization of authenticity, opaque market dynamics, and power asymmetries. The methodological approach combined critical bibliographic analysis and documentary research, articulating international cases with local events. The study is organized into thematic axes: conceptual foundations of forgery; deconstruction of stereotypes; historicity of evaluation criteria; vulnerabilities of the art system and the market of artworks and antiques; reactions to illicit acts; rigidity of scientific methodology when facing insoluble cases and bureaucratic resistance that restricts access to information. It concludes that the management of forgery requires overcoming the duality between punitive repression and market complacency, through a multisectoral approach integrating technology, education, regulation, and transparency. As a contribution, rather than seeking definitive answers, the study systematizes the phenomenon of art forgery in its multiple dimensions and proposes an epistemological reorientation of the debate.