The Forensic Eye presented by Chantal Brotherton-Radcliffe

Your Lecturer Chantal Brotherton-Ratcliffe started her career by training as a paintings conservator, and then moved into art history, working for Sothebys. She has been a lecturer in Old Master Paintings at Sothebys Institute of Art for over 30 years. She has also lectured for a number of institutions in London and elsewhere, including the National Gallery, the Royal Academy, the Wallace Collection and the Arts Society. Her particular interest is in demonstrating how to analyse the subtle stylistic features of a painting that might tell us who the artist is, and when a painting is a copy, good or bad.Lecture 1 Looking with the Eyes Wide Open We can stand for minutes in front of a pain ng and think we are seeing it, but how much have we actually no ced? How much more could we take in if we have a mental check list of things to look for, if we know how to know what is
significant to no ce. In this first session, we will consider many of the basic stylis c features of a pain ng, from colouring to the uses of ligh ng, to analyse how different ar sts tend to use them at different mes and in different art centres Do we ever no ce any technical aspects of the piece is it on canvas or on panel, for instance, - and does it ma er? What can an awareness of the pigments used, or the ar sts choice of ground colour, tell us about where and when something was painted?Lecture 2 Tricks, Tips and Trip-Ups In the second lecture, we will look at various forms of decep on. We will ask whether we are seeing what the ar st produced, or whether me, or later human interven on, has altered it. We will also look at pain ngs that they would have us believe are by one ar st, but which are produced by workshop assistants, later admirers, or downright forgers. Determining the difference between forgery, copy and original is one of the most difficult areas of the art world. Chantal will involve the audience in spo ng oddi es, dis nguishing copyists and iden fying forgeries. Lecture 3: Finding your Inner Connoisseur The first two talks will have looked at a number of physical and stylis c features that make it possible for us to iden fy date, place of produc on and art background of an ar st. This final talk will examine a specific group of ar sts, and give you a chance to try out your budding connoisseurial skills of recogni on.Lecture 3: Finding your Inner ConnoisseurThe first two talks will have looked at a number of physical and stylis c features that make it possible for us to iden fy date, place of produc on and art background of an ar st. This final talk will examine a specific group of ar sts, and give you a chance to try out your budding connoisseurial skills of recogni on.