Free public lecture
Cultural Forensics: Trade Secrets in Art Authentication
Associate Professor Robyn Sloggett, Centre for Cultural Materials Conservation, University of Melbourne
Listen to a recording of this public lecture
Any increase in market activity attracts opportunism. In the art market such opportunism manifests in many ways: bad works being ‘talked up’, works with weak provenance being traded as certainties, ‘strengthening’ of works with additions to ‘confirm’ dates or authors and of course, outright forgeries. The art market has developed a range of responses to such issues including addressing the method by which works are described, and using expert witnesses to validate particular works. This lecture explores the successes and failures of particular strategies for identifying and dealing with opportunistic artistic inventiveness; and explores the impacts of art fraud on our national identity.
Robyn Sloggett is Director of the Centre for Cultural Materials Conservation (CCMC) at the University of Melbourne. She has qualifications in Art History, Philosophy and Cultural Materials Conservation. Her research interests include the application of scientific instrumentation and methodology for the analysis of cultural material, art authentication and art fraud in Australia and the investigation of the materials and techniques of Australian artists. As Director of CCMC she also oversees the largest commercial cultural materials conservation service in the State.
- Date:
- Wednesday 2nd April 2008
- Time:
- 6:30pm
- Location:
- Theatre A, Elisabeth Murdoch Building
University of Melbourne - Enquiries:
- Gabrielle Murphy
School of Historical Studies
(+61 3) 8344 5961
g.murphy@unimelb.edu.au