Science: The Key To Modern Art Authentication
Great art has been sought after by the public for hundreds of years. Works of art completed by prominent artists can be extremely valuable. Since many of these artists have been dead for decades, the authentication process becomes a critical part of valuing their work.
Determining whether a painting is authentic or fake can be challenging. Fortunately, modern science has paved the way for the use of fact-based evidence during the art authentication process.
What's Under the Painting?
It is rare for an artist to generate a masterpiece in a single sitting. Many artists sketched out rough drafts of their final paintings on a canvas before finally painting over the sketches to create the finished work of art.
Modern science gives art authenticators the ability to see beneath the visible surface of a painting to identify any underlying sketches or drafts.
X-ray imaging, ultraviolet light, and infrared treatments are all scientific processes that can be used to uncover underlying drafts without causing any damage to the painting being evaluated.
This ensures that the value of the painting remains intact throughout the authentication process.
What Materials Were Used?
Another approach modern art authenticators can use to determine the authenticity of a painting is the evaluation of the materials used to create the painting. Prominent artists often worked with the same materials throughout their careers.
Many of the paints and pigments utilized by these artists can no longer be sourced, making it easy to spot a fake.
Scientists can use a mass spectrometer to evaluate the chemical composition of small paint samples collected from a painting in question. The results of the chemical composition test can be compared against the composition of known materials used by an artist to determine if there is a match.
What Is the Painting Technique?
Every artist has a unique way of creating the paintings they are so proud of. The individuality in painting technique across artists makes it easier for modern art authenticators to determine if a painting is a forgery.
Extreme magnification using modern scientific equipment can reveal the individual brushstrokes within a painting. These brush strokes can be visually compared with the known strokes of an artist by an art expert.
Similarities and differences in each stroke can be identified to help determine the authenticity of any painting being evaluated.
Science has changed the way that art authenticators approach their work. Fact-based evidence rooted in science can be used to more accurately attribute works of art to the artists who created them.
Contact a company like Art Discovery to learn more about scientific authentication.
