Perceiving a New Threat to Dealers on the Internet, the President of the FADA Takes Matters into His Own Hands

Internet sleuth and gallery owner Howard Rehs (right) with his father, Joseph B. Rehs.

By Kelly S. Mittleman

It sounds like a job for Sherlock Holmes, but when New York gallery owner Howard L. Rehs - who also happens to be President of the Fine Art Dealer's Association (FADA) - detected a case of Internet "intellectual property theft" involving his property, he decided to take matters into his own hands.

A third-generation veteran of a family-owned art gallery specializing in Nineteenth and Twentieth Century European paintings, Rehs often conducts business online with clients. So when he received a call a few weeks ago from a dealer whose client was "very interested" in a work by one of the Rehs' gallery favorites, painter Antonio Jacobsen, it appeared to be business as usual. Or so Rehs thought.

The plot thickened a week or so later, when the same dealer called Rehs to say that his client was "fairly sure" to purchase the painting, but that additional details were needed. Rehs quickly e-mailed the dealer digital images containing all of the pertinent information regarding the Jacobsen work, such as details of the frame, the signature and the provenance.

While waiting for news of the impending purchase, Rehs received a call from a dealer and friend in California asking his opinion about a work that was currently for sale on eBay. Rehs went online to look at the piece and then, out of curiosity, perused some of the other offerings on the site.

"I was just scrolling down when I saw [my] picture ["American Ship" by Jacobsen] for sale, and I couldn't believe it," Rehs says. "{My] gallery was selling the painting for $20,000, and here I was looking at [it] currently being offering for $23,000, and there were already bids on it at that time." Rehs points out that while Jacobsen often painted many versions of the same ship - each one subtly different from the other - the lot offered on eBay was an exact match.

Rehs first tried to contact eBay. No luck. He sent the firm the required e-mail complaint and received the standard form letter reply stating it would take 12 to 36 hours before they could get back to him.

Rehs then became a bit frantic. The sale of his painting was due to close in a few days and he wanted to get to the bottom of the matter as quickly as possible. He called the FBI and filed a report but was told that there appeared to be no crime committed in this case - another dead-end. Rehs then when back to eBay to find out the identity of the seller, also to no avail, since in order to find out the identity of a seller on the site you have to be an actual bidder.

"Not wanting to tip my hand, I decided to create another identity on eBay and place a bid...all of this so I could find out just who was trying to sell my painting," Rehs said. He acquired an ID name, bid the current asking price of $23,600 and was immediately outbid. Through his own sleuthing Rehs discovered the seller to be a woman in New York City and he decided, very cautiously, to contact her.

"I intimated from the seller that I was a rather wealthy individual from California who was in the film industry, and I asked many questions about the painting. After learning her name, where she lives, and her phone number, I also learned the 'fact' her gallery had a 'very large investment' in the painting....HA!"

The gallery owner trying to sell Rehs his own painting then sent Rehs some additional digital images of the work (all of which were taken by Rehs), proving undeniably that it was by Antonio Jacobsen. The gallery owner in question also told Rehs the banking information he would need in order to process his check for purchase of the Jacobsen painting.

Rehs speculates that this was indeed foul play on the part of the gallery owner who allegedly was attempting buy the painting from Rehs for $20,000, sell it on eBay for $23,000 and pocket the difference.

"You don't just take a dealer's picture and start hawking it everywhere, especially on eBay - [as if] it's okay to just load up all of my images and then contact the gallery after the sale has been made," Rehs fumed. "People have to be notified this is going on and it's just not right. Everyone is vulnerable to this practice."

In the meantime, Rehs has finally received a response from eBay. The company asked Rehs to file a VeRO form (Verified Rights Owner Program), which is designed by eBay to give intellectual property owners the opportunity to have items removed from the site if an infringement has occurred.

eBay acknowledged Rehs' concern and promptly closed the sale. Kevin Pursglove, Senior Director of Communications at eBay, says that when an individual finds something that violates a trademark, copyright, intellectual property rights, etc. they have to file the VeRO form, under penalty of perjury, to prove the item being offered for sale on the site is indeed theirs. "Then we remove the item," Pursglove says. "We feel we are caught in the middle here...eBay won't be in the position of being a referee [in these cases]."

After the VeRO process is complete and the item is still in question, individuals may file an appeal. "Since VeRO appeared a little over two years ago, the number of sellers filing appeals are very few," Pursglove says.

Rehs has since been assured by the FBI that a complete report has been filed - one that will be available for future reference - and that the gallery owner in question will be contacted about the matter.

Rehs says he may have his attorney speak to the errant dealer, explaining their discovery and perhaps the proper way to conduct business in the art world. In addition, Rehs will make sure FADA members are aware of the seriousness of the situation. "I've warned all of them to be on the lookout."