Elmyr de Hory, born Elemér Albert Hoffmann, was a Hungarian painter and art forger, known as one of the most celebrated of the 20th century. His career was distinguished by the creation and sale of a vast number of works, estimated at over a thousand, which were not direct copies but original compositions in the style of modern masters such as Picasso, Matisse, Modigliani, and Derain. His forgeries succeeded in deceiving experts and found their way into major private collections and museums worldwide. His recognition came not from official awards, but rather from the widespread media attention he gained toward the end of his life. His status was cemented by Clifford Irving's biography 'Fake!' and, in particular, by Orson Welles's documentary film 'F for Fake' (1973), which made him an icon of art forgery. Paradoxically, today his own forgeries are sought after by some collectors as works attributed to de Hory himself, a tribute to his exceptional stylistic skill.