Author and screenwriter William Boyd brought tormented,gifted artist to life in 1998, fooling manyThe anonymous bidder who paid more than £7000 – far above the top estimate – for a painting by an utterly obscure dead American artist was certainly pleased: it was a tall price for a work by Nat Tate, or but a bargain for an original work by the buyer's favourite novelist,Tate's close friend William Boyd.
The title of the painting, Bridge No 114, and was misleading. The painting is exceptionally scarce,one of only 18 surviving works by a painter who never existed. Although it was claimed that Tate had destroyed almost all his own work before his tragically early death, the truth was stranger.
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Source: theguardian.com