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Articles
Lucian Freud painting denied by artist is authenticated by experts
The artist insisted he did not paint Standing Male Nude, but three specialists have concluded it is his work.
A conservator repairs a painting and through her work established that it is a Rembrandt worth potentially $200MM
The painting, The Adoration of the Magi, is believed to date from 1632 to 1633. Scholars had long believed that only copies of the picture had survived, including well-known examples in Gothenburg, Sweden, and St. Petersburg, Russia.
The work had long been in the collection of a family that had no idea it was a genuine Rembrandt, until 2016, when art restorer Antonella di Francesco took it in for repairs after it fell off a wall.
A Small Pennsylvania Museum Just Discovered It Has Owned a Rembrandt for 70 Years Without Knowing It
For 70 years, leading art connoisseurs and museum curators were certain this painting was not by Rembrandt hand. But, beginning in 2018, researchers performed a variety of forensic tests on the Allentown Museum’s painting, many of which had never been applied to it before, including infrared reflectography, scanning electron microscopy, and cross-section evaluation. They were able to peer into the “past of the painting,” and prove it was a true Rembrandt.
Nine Van Gogh ‘fakes’ that have emerged as the real thing
Forensic science and scholarship have proven nine paintings previously deemed to be fakes by Van Gogh experts to now be acknowledged as genuine Van Goghs. All nine paintings were previously downgraded as fakes by art connoisseurs in the 1980s and 1990s.
A good catch: The Mackerels now looks set to be authenticated as a genuine Van Gogh
This still life in Switzerland’s Reinhart collection was dismissed as a forgery. A painting of a pair of mackerels previously dismissed as a fake may now be accepted as an authentic Van Gogh. The Still Life with Mackerels and Tomatoes is at the Oskar Reinhart “Am Römerholz” Collection in Winterthur, near Zurich.
Sotheby’s to offer newly discovered Peter Paul Rubens masterwork
With the aid of independent forensic examination, including dendrochronological analysis, research now positions the present painting as the earlier and original painting, from which all other known examples were based, and it was likely executed three to six years after Rubens returned to Antwerp from Rome in 1608. The painting is on view at Sotheby’s London 29 November – 4 December, 2019, where it makes its public exhibition debut for the first time…
Botticelli ‘copy’ in Welsh museum is genuine, experts say
A doodle of a man’s head unseen for more than 500 years has helped to persuade experts that a painting in the national museum of Wales is almost certainly a genuine Botticelli. National Museum Cardiff has put on display a painting of a Madonna and child that had for decades been dismissed as a crude copy of Botticelli’s style.
Long-lost Italian Renaissance painting sells for 24 million euros, ($26.6 million)
A long-lost painting by 13th century Italian master Cimabue that was found in the kitchen of an elderly French woman was sold for 24 million euros ($26.6 million), more than four times the pre-auction estimate, auction Acteon house said. Forensic analysis convinced the experts the painting was real: worm holes in the wood matched with another wood panel painting by the artist.
Discovey of an Authentic Work by Anthony van Dyck, Britain’s First Art Star, Hiding in Plain Sight
“This Van Dyck discovery is an especially important one and unequivocally proves the value of this innovative use of digital technology to share and grow knowledge,” Andrew Ellis, Art UK’s director, told the Guardian. This marks the first major discovery from the free-to-use online forum’s hive mind, which considers input from “art detectives” including museum staff, art history scholars, and amateur enthusiasts.
Long-lost overpainted portrait reveals young Queen Elizabeth I
A mysterious portrait of an unknown woman has been identified as a rare depiction of a young Elizabeth I projecting power, confidence and suitability for marriage. The discovery was announced by the auction house Bonhams, which said the California owners of the painting had no idea who the sitter was until they had it cleaned. The procedure revealed the picture had been overpainted, probably in the 19th century. Andrew McKenzie, the director of the auction house’s old masters department, called it an “important and exciting” discovery.
‘Lost’ Caravaggio Painting Worth $170 Million Bought Before Auction — But Is It Authentic?
‘Lost’ Caravaggio Painting Worth $170 Million Bought Before Auction..forensic analysis of paint pigments., X-rays and cleaning revealed that the attic painting was authentic and had underwent many revisions with “lots of retouching,” which experts also see as a sign of the authenticity of the painting and not a forgery or copy,
A Long-Lost (and Disputed) Caravaggio Due to Fetch as Much as $171 Million at Auction Was Just Sold in a Mysterious Private Sale
A painting experts claim is a long-lost second version of Caravaggio’s Judith Beheading Holofernes (circa 1607), discovered in a French attic in 2014, will not be hitting the auction block this week after all. In the eleventh hour, Marc Labarbe Auctions in Toulouse, France, cancelled the planned June 27 auction after it received a private offer that was too good for the owners to pass up.
Forensic Science and the Authentication of Two Disputed Artworks
Recent cases demonstrate the role of forensic science in the authentication of fine art. Paintings by Botticelli and van Gogh, the authenticity and attribution of which had previously been called into question, have been authenticated with the help of X-ray imaging, pigment testing, and infrared analysis…
Authenticating The $450.3 Million Leonardo da Vinci Masterpiece With Science
Some in the art world may not know that the 500-year old masterpiece painting Salvator Mundi (“Savior of the World”) by Leonardo da Vinci that recently sold for nearly half a billion dollars is imperfect. The work with a shady history was damaged and heavily repainted and then restored.
Delacroix painting, lost since 1850, that was recently discovered in a Paris apartment and authenticated by forensic experts.
French painter Eugène Delacroix did many preparatory works for his 1834 masterpiece, “Women of Algiers in Their Apartment.” One of these preliminary paintings disappeared in 1850 after it was sold to French diplomat Charles-Edgar de Mornay, with whom Delacroix traveled to Algeria with in 1832.
Rubens Painting Cast Off by Metropolitan Museum as a Copy Authenticated as Real—Oops It’s the real thing.
Ben van Beneden, director of Antwerp’s Rubenshuis, has now declared Portrait of a Young Girl, possibly Clara Serena Rubens to be authentic, and is including it at the institution’s upcoming exhibition “Rubens in Private: the Master Portrays his Family.”
Sotheby’s London Sells Portrait of An Old Women As Authentic Rubens and Fetches 20 Times the Original Hammer
It has been reported that the appraisers at Sotheby’s London relied on certain clues to authenticate painting and attribute to Peter Paul Rubens himself. For example, Rubens had painted this old lady before, and there were examples of Rubens work with the old women at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and the Lichtenstein museum.
What lies beneath: ‘Lost’ Picasso revealed 100 years after artist hid it! – Sept 22, 2019
New imaging technology has carefully reconstructed a never-before-seen Picasso painting that the artist covered beneath one of his most famous pieces more than 100 years ago.
Fine Art Investigations: “New Yorker Magazine Journalist Settles Libel Lawsuit with Forensic Art Expert Paul Biro”
Journalist Settles Libel Lawsuit with Art Restorer Read Fine Arts Investigations original article Journalist Patrick Bahners has settled his part of a libel lawsuit with Canadian art restorer Peter Paul Biro who alleged Bahners published untrue...
Fine Art Investigations: Peter Paul Biro Wins Day in Court vs. New Yorker magazine —Defends Self from Defamation
FEDERAL JUDGE DENIES NEW YORKER MAGAZINE'S MOTION TO DISMISS ART EXPERT'S DEFAMATION LAWSUIT *Magazine's key source denied a motion *Plaintiff to add more defendants *Federal Judge says article is "capable of defamatory meaning". *$20-Million ruling comes two weeks...
Center for Art Law on Paul Biro vs Conde Nast
“What’s in a Name?” Peter Paul Biro v. Condé Nast for Defamation Read: Article on Biro from the Center for Art Law Date: May 20, 2013 By Irina Tarsis, Esq. “Sticks and stones may break my bones But names will never hurt me.” 19th Century English nursery rhyme ...
NPR Interview with Paul Biro on Forensic Analysis of Fine Art
Paul Biro NPR Interview Paul discusses the need for fine art collectors to properly authenticate the works in their collections... N.Y. Art Dealer Faces Charges In Forgery Case Long Island art dealer Glafira Rosales is scheduled to be arraigned Monday on...
‘Lost’ Leonardo da Vinci to go on display at The National Gallery, London
The Lost Salvator Mundi was recently authenticated as the work of Leonardo da Vinci will go on display at the National Gallery in November.
Art and Microscopy
Peter Paul Biro of Forensic Studies in Art, Montreal, Canada and Dr Alison Crossley, Honorary Secretary of the Electron Microscopy Group, Royal… Alongside chemical evidence, physical evidence obtained by microscopy can also help to attribute an artwork to an artist. Peter Paul Biro of Forensic Studies in Art, Montreal, Canada, demonstrated examples of paintings by artists such as JW Turner…
Peter Paul Biro and Martin Kemp Analyze Possible Da Vinci Painting
A fingerprint has intensified the debate about the origin of a mysterious drawing sold at auction for $21,850. Experts don’t agree whether it’s a 19th–century German work or a genuine Leonardo worth $150 million. Is it a bargain Leonardo da Vinci picked up under the noses of connoisseurs or is it just an old German drawing?
Professor Martin Kemp Praises Work of Peter Paul Biro on Da Vinci Portrait
"Martin Kemp 2018 Book “Living with Leonardo” excerpt on Paul Biro"
Examination Report: Lady with Umbrella, Whistler
In April 2013, Peter Paul Biro conducted a day-long, detailed condition examination of the oil on canvas painting, Lady with Parasol. Widely attributed to Whistler, the painting has long hung in the Butler Institute of American Art, in Youngstown, Ohio. Present at the examination was Dr. Louis A. Zona, Director and Chief Curator of the Butler Institute and two staff members.