All That Glitters

Studded with blue-chip names, multi-million-dollar paintings, private jets and bottles of Dom Pérignon '08, this tantalizing glimpse by a former dealer into the art world's most rarefied stratum doubles as a cautionary tale about a largely unregulated industry where hubris, greed and fraud abound * New York Times *
Exhilarating... Orlando Whitfield tells the story of his former friend's downfall in thrilling detail... Compulsively readable -- Kathryn Hughes * Guardian *
A lacerating critique of the contemporary art market ... All That Glitters is as compulsive as a thriller. It is literary dynamite - a blazing exposé that cracks open an elite sphere cloaked in mystery and lays it mercilessly bare * Spectator *
A jaw-dropping romp through the absurd world of art dealing... All That Glitters is a hell of a read. * Irish Independent on Sunday *
Educational, entertaining and very enjoyable -- Marian Keyes
This is "Liar's Poker" for the art world. * The Economist *
The culture of discretion that enshrouds the art market obscures a multitude of sins, so it is bracing (and great fun) to watch Orlando Whitfield flout the code of silence to name names, cite prices, and reveal scams. All That Glitters is an art world GREAT GATSBY, deliciously withering and dishy, a parable about the price of beauty, the power of charisma, and the limits of friendship. -- Patrick Radden Keefe, author of * Empire of Pain *
An elegy for a friendship ... exceptionally accomplished ... Whitfield exposes the dubious financial mores of the very highest end of the contemporary market * Times Literary Supplement *
A highly readable and perceptive account of how contemporary art is bought and sold -- Philip Hook * Sunday Telegraph *
Ultra-vivid ... it reads like a true crime documentary * i Paper, Nonfiction Book of the Month *
Readers drawn to the book's promise of an insider's recollections of the art-dealing ecosystem will not be disappointed * The Art Newspaper *
Whitfield writes beguilingly and amusingly, enhanced by an art dealer's eye ... made me laugh out loud -- Nancy Durrant * Evening Standard *
The art world revealed in this delicious, sharp and often breathtaking memoir is one of excess and illusion those of us outside it can barely imagine, and Whitfield unveils it nimbly and wisely. Funny, juicy, wistful and sad, it's destined to be one of the books of 2024 -- Megan Nolan, author * Ordinary Human Failings *
Philbrick's story serves as a means for Whitfield masterfully to illuminate the opaque and mysterious art world for readers, explaining the shady operations of the commercial gallery system, the role and place of auction houses and, above all, the transformation of art into an asset class and a vehicle for investment: a mere entry on a ledger. For anybody curious to learn the grubby reality of the art market, Whitfield's memoir makes for essential reading. -- Matthew Mason * The Tablet *
Completely jaw-dropping and unputdownable -- 'The best new books to read in May 2024' * i News *
Explosive ... the inside story of the biggest art fraud in American history * Guardian *
The book of the year * The Fence *
One of the hottest memoirs of 2024 * Sunday Times Style *
A jaw-dropping, riveting true-crime memoir -- 'The 30 Best Books for Summer' * i Paper *
Highly personal ... an excellent account of how Philbrick rose to a jet-setting, cocaine-and-champagne fuelled lifestyle * Literary Review *
Art, money and greed combine in All That Glitters ... a compelling read * Business Insider *
A wry, sparkling memoir ... All That Glitters is a veritable masterpiece * Spears Magazine *
I cannot conceive of a better book about the grisly nature of the art world than this... Hugely entertaining -- Nicolas Lezard * The Oldie *
A story about art, the art market and disillusionment * ArtReview *
A diabolically delicious snapshot of the Art world's luminous façade -- Foyles 'Top Ten Reads for May'
A tremendous book. A fantastically entertaining and brutally honest account of the scurrility of the contemporary art world. A brilliant, devastating exposé -- William Boyd, author * The Romantic *
Whitfield tells the story vividly, winning our trust. He is clearly thoughtful and principled. He has a great ear for dialogue and rarely overwrites. Still, questions remain. If an old friend were to land in prison, would you keep omertà? Or would you write a sharply observed memoir, building up their glamour while not holding back on their character failings over the years? If so, would it be a betrayal - or a valuable exercise in truth-telling? This is the latter, I think. * Apollo *
When high-flying art-dealer Inigo Philbrick was convicted of a multimillion-dollar fraud, it rocked the industry ... Whitfield details the web of deceit that led to his downfall -- ‘Books to look out for in 2024’ * Guardian *
In Orlando Whitfield's gripping memoir, All That Glitters, the murky underbelly of the art world is laid bare with startling clarity...What sets All That Glitters apart is Whitfield's fearless disregard for the art world's code of silence. With sharp wit and unflinching honesty, he names, cites prices, and reveals scams, painting a vivid picture of an industry intoxicated by wealth and power * Artlyst *
Packed with page-turning incident and colourful characters, Whitfield's eye-opening window into the glamorous, deceitful world of fine art is a thrilling story of greed, fraud and betrayal -- 'The Non-Fiction You Need to Read in 2024', Waterstones
At the coal face of rich awfulness for more than a decade , Orlando Whitfield worked as a London art dealer and gallerist ... [Whitfield] writes with brilliantly descriptive , and often tendentious eloquence * The Irish Times *
Incredible and disturbing -- Waterstones Blog
A rip-roaring artworld exposé, All That Glitters is a true story of corruption and crime in the international art market from the perspective of the young men made greedy and duplicitous by it. Call it-The Wolf of Mayfair. In a world of counterfeits, phonies, and frauds, Orlando Whitfield is the real deal -- Diarmuid Hester, author * Nothing Ever Just Disappears *
Juicier than a bottle of Gamay at lunchtime and even more intoxicating, All That Glitters is an amazing takedown of a world that desperately needed taking down. -- Gary Shteyngart
All That Glitters is a shocking, funny, and brilliantly written tour of the morally depraved art market. Whitfield writes blisteringly about the infantile excesses of wealth, and beautifully about art. -- Charlie Gilmour, author * Featherhood *
A gripping look at a high-octane collision of glamour, art and money -- 'Best non-fiction books for 2024' * Stylist *
Fascinating -- 'Culture Editor's Picks' * Evening Standard *
Sharp-eyed, knowing, witty, this one of a kind memoir is a treat. Whitfield may have burned his bridges to the glittery art world he skewers here, but his book shines with solid gold. -- Joseph Kanon
Thrillingly written -- Caroline Sanderson 'Editor's Choice' in May fiction previews * The Bookseller *
In the largely unregulated art market, sharp practices and scams can go under the radar - but only for so long. This is Whitfield's account of how his charismatic friend and business partner ended up in federal prison for a multimillion-dollar fraud -- 'Summer Reads 2024' * Guardian *
Whitfield reflects on regretting an old friend of Inigo Philbrick ... As Philbrick rises and Whitfield becomes disenchanted with the art world, it painfully describes how business almost destroyed the British author's life. All That Glitters is at its height a sad tale of male friendship gone wrong * Irish News *
'An art-world story and a scammer story ... One of the most endearing aspects of Whitfield's narrative is the precision and enthusiasm with which he pinpoints all the traits that drew him to Philbrick and kept drawing him in, even as flickers of his friend's predatory unscrupulousness began to emerge. * New Yorker, 'Best Books of 2024 So Far' *