Fake or Fortune?

You come home with your brand new treasure, only to get it out of the frame and it looks...off. Don't despair! This happens from time to time, even to the best of us. 

I picked up these two Sam back prints at a second-hand shop a while ago. As you can see the signatures are slightly different on each piece, the subject matter is typical Sam Black, and the size is spot on. I should have known the light grey title to the left was suspicious, however, I didn't have a loupe with me and the prints were behind non-glare glass. 

I brought them home, took them out of the frame and looked at them with a loupe. Even with the loupe, it's not easy to tell by the print alone, but that writing in the lower left hand corner is pixelated, badly, like a Lichtenstein painting. 

I'd read that there were some Black reproductions out there, but I've never come across any information on them. Like why would Black would sign reproductions, especially when woodcuts are already a reproductive medium? I keep them though, as a curiosity and a learning experience, (and luckily I didn't pay too much for them). 

Some tips and tricks to identifying fake from real:

• If you have a jeweller's loupe or small magnifying glass, carry it with you, this can be invaluable for checking signatures and edges. 
• Beware of non-glare glass, it's hard to see through clearly, especially with a loupe.
• Check the paper quality, is it too light? Or textured like an art card? 
• Check the back of the canvas or paper for any marks or writing that might indicate it's authentic. 
• Research your piece if you think it might be fake - start with the size. Is yours the same size as the catalogues list? 
• Lastly, if you feel you might be dealing with a dubious piece, ask if you can take it out of the frame for further inspection. Some people will allow you to, some won't.

Check my Sam Blacks out for yourself below. Do you have any additional info? Have you ever bought something that turned out to be fake? I'd love to hear your stories!

My Dad, Luke Lindoe and Two Plates

My dad was born and raised in the area that is now known as the Medicine Hat Historic Clay District. The area where the South Saskatchewan River meets the clay bank was dad's childhood playground - as were the Brick and Tile and Medalta factory grounds. 

Dad was a storyteller, and we often heard childhood stories about how he and his brother spent weekends digging through the "dish dump", a pile of discarded Medalta seconds. They used to cobble together sets of unbroken dishes and sell them to ladies in the neighbourhood - until word got around and the Medalta employees put a stop to it.

Luke Lindoe was working at the Brick and Tile Company when my dad was around 12 years old. He got to know my dad from seeing him play in the area on a daily basis. One day, Lindoe gave my dad two of his promotional plates from the Medicine Hat Brick and Tile Company. This must have happened sometime between 1962 to 1965, as my dad left Medicine Hat for Lethbridge in 1965 when he was 16.

Years later, my mom recognised the plates, heard my dad's story, and wisely stored them away for safekeeping. Fifty years after the plates were gifted to my father, one of them is mine and the other will go to my sister. 

The plates are simple promotional pieces for the Medicine Hat Brick and Tile Company and I admit, they're not my favourite Lindoe pieces. However, the story of Lindoe's generosity to a local kid, my mom's recognition of Lindoe's work, and the connection the plate has to my dad's childhood have made the little plates incredibly precious to me. 

My dad died in 2013, and in 2014 my mom, sister and I visited Medicine Hat to experience the Clay District and the area my dad spoke so fondly of. The restored factories are still there, as are the clay banks, the meandering river and the railway; the auspicious combination of resources that put Medicine Hat on the map.

 - René Mehrer

*This story has been put together with input from my mom, stories from my dad and uncle, and further confirmation and clarification of the facts from Luke Lindoe’s biography.