eBay Listings Attributed to Jim Nutt and Christina Ramberg Draw Forgery Claims
A pair of low-priced eBay listings tied to two important Chicago artists has prompted sharp doubts about authenticity, with experts calling one work a forgery and the other’s gallery label fake.
The drawings, attributed to Jim Nutt and Christina Ramberg, were listed by dantegallery for $499 each, with bidding starting at $99. Both carried labels on the back from respected Chicago galleries — Phyllis Kind Gallery on the Ramberg and Jean Albano Gallery on the Nutt — a detail that appeared designed to lend the works credibility. But Karen Lennox, a veteran Chicago dealer who began her career at Kind’s gallery, said the Nutt was not by Jim Nutt and the Ramberg label was fake. She also said the Ramberg drawing itself was not authentic.
Lennox pointed to inconsistencies in the label format and said the Phyllis Kind Gallery never used inventory numbers in the way shown on the piece. She also contacted Jean Albano, who said she had never seen the artwork. Jim Nutt (b. 1938) later confirmed the suspicion in a brief email: “I did not make that drawing.”
David Nolan, a New York dealer who has mounted several one-person shows of Nutt, was equally dismissive after examining the work in his Upper East Side gallery. He called it “a bad copy” and “a total forgery,” adding that the line quality lacked the confidence and elegance associated with Nutt’s drawings. Looking at the Ramberg, Nolan said Christina Ramberg (1946–1995) typically worked on smaller sheets and rarely signed her pieces, while the example in question felt off in scale and execution.
The listing itself included a disclaimer stating that there was no specific documentation and no expert review, and that all sales were final. The seller, Katarzyna Ozimek, said she buys art second hand and resells it on eBay. The return address traced to Walton, New York.
The broader inventory on the site ranged from Chicago Imagists such as Ray Yoshida to artists including Thornton Dial, Minnie Evans, Lee Godie, Sister Gertrude Morgan, Fritz Scholder, Keith Haring, Helen Frankenthaler, and Andy Warhol. In a market where attribution can be reduced to a thumbnail and a label, the episode underscores how quickly online sales can blur the line between provenance and performance.
