Christopher Mason

In this lively discussion with Charles Ruas, author Christopher Mason divulges how auction houses turn works of art into investment commodities, how shopping-mall honcho Alfred Taubman transformed Sotheby's into a powerhouse against rival Christie's, and how their financial shenanigans have affected the worlds of art, international society, and white-collar crime prosecutions - or have they? Of particular interest is their discussion of how market activity has come to determine an artist's social standing and professional reputation alike.

Christopher Mason's investigation of the
Sotheby's-Christie's price-fixing scandal is detailed in his new book, The Art of the Steal.

RELATED PROGRAMS

Conversations with Writers

RADIO SERIES

Host Charles Ruas in conversation with contemporary writers and poets, continuing a stream of intelligent discussion dating back to his legendary days at WBAI Pacifica Radio in New York in the seventies. Ruas is the author of Conversations with American Writers, a Fulbright scholar, and a distinguished French translator. His writing has frequently appeared in both ARTNews and Art in America. His other Clocktower-produced program is Historic Audio From the Archives of Charles Ruas and is one of the most brilliant and extensive collections of historic audio in our archive.