Artwork authenticity

Much of a work’s value rests on a name, and the name rests on opinion. A painting bought as an original may later be given to the artist’s workshop by a new catalogue, refused by the committee that authenticates the artist’s work, or held back by an auction house that will not offer it without a certificate. The object on the wall has not changed, but it can no longer be sold for what was paid for it — and the owner is left asking who, if anyone, answers for that.

Authenticity disputes sit between art history and law. Expert opinion rarely settles them on its own, and the legal questions concern promises, evidence and responsibility as much as the work itself:

• the rules on annulling a purchase for mistake when an attribution proves wrong, and on the time within which that remedy must be sought;
• the rules on how a work is described in a catalogue or on an invoice, from a firm attribution to “workshop of” or “after”, and on what each wording promises a buyer;
• the rules on authentication committees and artists’ foundations, and on whether their refusal to recognise a work can be challenged;
• the rules on the evidence a court will weigh — scientific analysis, stylistic opinion, provenance records — and on appointing a court expert;
• the rules on the say that an artist, or the artist’s heirs, have over whether a work is genuine;
• the rules on the checks a dealer or an auction house must carry out before a work is offered under a name;
• the rules on certificates of authenticity, what they are worth, and who may issue them;
• the rules on what becomes of a work found to be a forgery — seizure, marking, destruction or return to its owner.

Our lawyers can support you with this.