Art forgery: defining scope and research questions

Detecting Art Forgeries

Art Forgery

Artwork is a subjective object mostly bought and paid for depending on a client's aesthetic taste. Genuine art pieces from centuries past, however, become coveted items for avid art collectors and museum curators alike. Because of the high price some collectors are willing to go to possess authentic works of art, the forgery of supposed authentic artwork has become a habit for masters and amateur artists alike. Art forgeries have spanned centuries; before the common use of technology and other techniques utilized by field experts, masters and amateur painters and sculptors have escaped unnoticed. These forgers have managed to sell their works of art easily enough -- that is, until art detectives came into the scene. But how does one ultimately tell a piece's authenticity in all of its likeness to a genuine article?

A forged artwork -- or a forgery in general -- is an object that is peddled to unsuspecting or wary customers as a genuine piece originating from a genuine source. A forged van Gogh or a forged Rembrandt is a work that supposedly comes from either artist, though the notion is untrue. Forgery is "the intentional misrepresentation of a (supposed) artifact, work of art or not, as far as its issuing from a specified source is concerned" (Wreen, 1983). What can possibly be worth millions of dollars might just be a forger's attempt to swindle and gain monetary profit from weeks or months' worth of forging work.

The Art Detectives

The immensity of a genuine artwork's price can be costly, and this is why art detectives become important members of the art world. A person like Martin Kemp has the background expertise in detecting Leonardo da Vinci forgeries and authentic works. In fact, his expert opinion "can help [a] painting become part of [the] world's cultural heritage" or can "cause [a] painting to be tossed into the trash" (Grann, 2010). Like Thomas Hoving and Bernard Berenson -- also art historians and experts of note -- Kemp supplies Peter Paul Bir? And Nicholas Eastaugh are also tasked with distinguishing forgery from genuine artwork, and both experts in the field have used innovative techniques as well as gut instinct and experience as ways to determine the artwork's authenticity. Kemp himself is so renowned for his skill in da Vinci works that even he has to guard himself against con men that look to forge his signature (Grann, 2010).

What all of these men have in common is the fact that they put not only their instincts to the test, they also use the vast amount of forensic technology and chemistry in order to determine an artwork's authentication. Using methods that have been tried and tested true for various fields -- criminology, scientific research, etc. -- Kemp, Bir?, and Eastaugh have found innovative ways in which to distinguish the art forgeries amidst genuine articles. Kemp puts in a mixture of brushstroke analysis, composition, iconography, and pigment evaluation in order to determine the authenticity of the works he is asked to examine (Grann, 2010). Bir? himself has acknowledged the use of DNA and fingerprint analysis to pull physical evidence from paintings (Spinney, 2009). Likewise, Eastaugh has set up a Pigmentum Project, where he and his staff use X-ray, infrared, and chemical analysis techniques in order to pinpoint the possible historical origins of specific pigments (Spinney, 2009).

Methods to Detect Forgeries

Simple forgeries are usually easily discernible due to eye-level anachronisms. Objects of fashion, style of lines, etc. that only just cropped up in the 19th century should not be found in supposed cultural works of the Middle Ages. Yet while instinct, experience, and extensive knowledge of historical origins are definite skills to be had for art detectives, even the naked eye may not be able to distinguish the anachronisms within a painting. This is where the technological methods come to play.