Ponzi and Picasso

“A lot of books have been written on the financial crisis but not about how it impacted the art world. Ponzi & Picasso is a great story to read whether you are inside or outside that world. It’s a fascinating look at a fascinating world at a fascinating time.” Robert Wiedemer, New York Times bestselling author of Aftershock and America’s Bubble Economy "I felt like I was on crack, I couldn't put it down." Robert Guinsler, Sterling Lord Literistic. "Fasten your seat belt and brace yourself for a wild romp through the best and worst of the art netherworld...where double-dealing is the norm and breaking promises is an art form; Ponzi & Picasso will titillate, appall and delight you. Enjoy the ride!" Gail Blanke, New York Times best selling author of In My Wildest Dreams, and Between Trapezes, an Oprah selection. "Ponzi & Picasso is a heart-stopping read from an insider's view of the international art world where branding and marketing of artists trumps talent every time. The characters are as razor sharp as today's headlines and the plot speeds along towards a climax that will leave readers (plus high-rollers in art world) quivering in their shoes!" David Samson, best-selling author of 21 books: the Funny Guy series. "Art novices will read Ponzi & Picasso to understand the murky world of contemporary art. Art professionals will shudder from the familiar New York Times stories and second-guess the protagonist. It's a page turner; be prepared to lose a few hours sleep." Don N. Thompson, London Times best selling author of The $12 Million Stuffed Shark: The Curious Economics of Contemporary Art. Henry Classico, the esteemed New York art dealer, crosses the line when his genuine love of art is co-opted by greed. After he squanders most of the capital from his private equity art fund, the sub prime mortgage crisis hits hard and threatens to bury him. Desperate to raise cash, he sells the same rare Picasso twice–– first to a Russian oligarch and then to one of his lovers. His only redress is to travel to the exotic underbelly of the Beijing art scene to commission the world's best forger. Unfortunately, he double-crosses the local Mafia/Triad kingpin whose tentacles reach all the way to New York. Alouisha Jones met Henry Classico at the Yale MFA art exhibition, where he was trolling for his latest art find. Instead of a show at his gallery, he offers her a job as his sentry-receptionist. Reluctantly, the former scholarship student accepts and is quickly seduced by her boss's glamorous, bling-enshrined world. Soon, her innocence and career are on a dangerous collision course with the art establishment. Unwittingly caught in Classico's subterfuge, she acquires the power to take down the entire global art market. She is fraught with indecision––do the right thing and be vilified by the art world, or do nothing and be guilty of collusion. Tomorrow, her name will appear on the front page of every newspaper––but not to applaud her life's work. If you ever wanted to know the events lurking behind a black on black painting that sells for tens of millions of dollars, Rochelle Ohrstrom's debut novel scrapes away the veneer of art-speak gloss and reveals the grit and dirt rabbit-glued between the stretchers.

Rochelle Ohrstrom is a familiar figure in the New York art world, in roles a diverse as artist, patron, collector and museum committee board member. She has known many of the fascinating figures of that world As a painter, she has had three works exhibited by Lowry Simms, the former Metropolitan Museum's curator. Ohrstrom's work has also been acquired by two museums. When British Airways commissioned her to paint the experience of supersonic flight, she flew in the cockpit of the Concorde. As collector and major donor, she has spent time in the fast lanes of art from Beijing to Tehran and Dubai. Ohrstrom was the first woman CEO of a nationally recognized advertising agency. She has directed several television commercials, and produced eight television shows. She often travels to places of extreme natural beauty, but lives and works in Manhattan. This is her first work of fiction. She is working on a sequel.