Dr Seuss works keep coming

Gadzooks! Works by zany Dr Seuss were drawn after his death! How, asks Alex Mason, did ... The Cat in the Hat come back?
An Auckland gallery is embroiled in a long-running dispute as host of The Art of Dr Seuss exhibition, which has been plagued by accusations of forgery and fraud.
The exhibition, at Lonely Dog Gallery on Customs St East, includes reproductions of illustrations from Theodor Seuss Geisel's children's books and previously unseen artwork painted at home. Also on show are resin casts of Unorthodox Taxidermy - fantasy creatures he created using parts from dead zoo animals.
But American artist Gary Arseneau says the exhibition misrepresents reproductions as original works of art. He says the publishers of the work incorrectly label the pieces as "serigraphs" and "lithographs", which he says must come from the artist's own hand.
"They play fast and loose with terminology because it's profitable," he told The Aucklander from Florida.
Exhibition curator Ron Epskamp is unperturbed by Mr Arseneau, who has been chasing The Chase Group, publishers of The Art of Dr Seuss, for years. "Every time they have a show he tends to pop his head up," Mr Epskamp says.
Because the originals are not available for viewing or purchase, Mr Epskamp says without authorised reproductions "there wouldn't be any Seuss artwork out there".
"And I think nowadays in the art market high-quality reproduction is readily acceptable. I mean what isn't acceptable is cheap knock-offs."
Mr Epskamp made it clear at the opening that these are reproductions.
Asked if the work is still being misrepresented when a galley is upfront, Mr Arseneau says: "It's a red herring."
His belief is: "The dead don't create art." He says he has produced 10,000 original works since 1986, while Seuss has created and approved 72,000 pieces since his death in 1991. "How could someone do seven times more work than me, when he's dead?"
Mr Epskamp says the work is reproduced by The Chase Group following instructions from Seuss's wife, Audrey Geisel, laid out by Seuss before his death. "One of [Dr Seuss's] dictates is the fact that the work is as close to the original as possible."
He says the originals are owned by Audrey, and are housed and categorised in America. "His books were his public legacy, his art was his private legacy. So it's really important to her to maintain that integrity.
"Hopefully, one day, the originals will end up on public display."
Mr Arseneau says he has nothing against reproductions, but The Chase Group does not market this work as that. "They admit he was dead, they admit the work is done by someone else, but they promote it as the work of Theodor Geisel. Theodor Geisel has never seen the work; he was dead when they were forged."
Mr Eskamp says people like Mr Arseneau should not "be allowed to dictate whether or not an artist is allowed to release artwork posthumously, [particularly when] the artist themselves have said, 'this is what I want'."
Mr Arseneau maintains there is a lack of full disclosure and that The Chase Group has changed Seuss's/Geisel's wishes "to fit their agenda".
Some pieces are marketed as limited editions, but Mr Arseneau says under US Copyright Law a limited edition must be signed and numbered by the author of that work. "There is no artwork and there is no signature. These are forgeries."
He says Geisel's "legacy is being bastardised" to make a profit. "This is about money so it's fraud," he says.
He says if he was defaming The Chase Group, they would have taken action against him. Instead, they simply refuse to comment. "[They] haven't sued me, and it's not for lack of funds. I think it's very clear that they don't want to draw any more attention to this."
People who attended the exhibition enjoyed seeing work other than Dr Seuss' illustrations. "They really are hilarious," said one woman looking at the taxidermy. "You look into their eyes and you can't help but laugh. It's really happy stuff."
The 50th anniversary edition of The Sneetches was unveiled at the exhibition, which runs until May 29.