The Gabriel Loppé artist committee
An artist’s committee is an association made up of specialists with a deep knowledge of a painter or sculptor’s work often working alongside the descendants and heirs to an artist’s estate. The committee serves as a guarantor of authenticity, and of an artist’s credibility in artistical, historical and legal aspects.
The committee’s chief objective is to preserve and defend the memory of the artist and to sustain ongoing respect and relevance for his or her work. To this end, an artist’s committee monitors, where applicable, the issue of counterfeits on the art market.
In its statutes, the goal for the association constituting the Committee is “to defend the work, the rights and the memory of the painter Gabriel Loppé and to promote knowledge of his work.”
By work, we mean paintings, graphic works (drawings, watercolours, engravings) and photographic works (photo prints, glass plates).
This also refers to the painter’s professional equipment such as easels, pallets, compasses, photo equipment, mountaineering equipment
etc.
The artist’s committee makes all decisions in a collegiate manner.
In Gabriel Loppé’s case a number of forgeries have already been identified (specifically at an auction in Châtellerault, France in 2017 and at Sotheby’s, London in 2018), which justifies the committee’s obligation to follow both the auction and the dealer market.
The Gabriel Loppé Committee undertakes to issue certificates of authenticity for works submitted to its experts.
The Committee is also compiling a catalogue raisonné of Gabriel Loppé’s oeuvre listing all the works known to date. All information regarding private ownership and location are dealt with in the strictest confidentiality.
This committee proposes to:
- record and list all of Loppé’s work for a forthcoming catalogue raisonné.
- carry out expert assessments to provide certificates of authenticity.
All owners of any paintings, drawings or photographs by Gabriel Loppé, whether a public institution or private individual are invited to contact this Committee for expertise and to receive a certificate of authenticity stamped “Comité Gabriel Loppé”.
Owners are also encouraged to inform the Committee of any works they may know of with a view to expanding and enhancing the catalogue raisonné.
The need to establish such a committee for the painter Gabriel Loppé, is essential, especially given his growing international reputation. The same holds true for protecting his work, both locally in Chamonix and for the paintings sold on a national and international scale.
