Content

• Steps
• Tips

If you want to buy a painting for your own pleasure, buy something that you like and that is inexpensive. But buying a piece of art as an investment is another matter entirely. It is not the art itself that is more important here, but who created it, as well as the origin, that is, proof that it was this artist who painted the picture.

Steps

1. 1 Do the necessary work. Explore the work, familiarize yourself with other works of the author, compare the signatures, examine them closely. Improving your knowledge is very important for assessing the picture and understanding what to look for to determine authenticity.
2. 2 Visit the museum and see the patina If you ask to see the back of the painting, the workers will help you to do so. Appreciate the feel and look of old artwork. Estimate the depth and number of layers required to achieve the artist's desired color.
3. 3 Look at the picture from the front and back.
   • Appreciate the patina of the painting itself: the presence of dirt and dust, the saturation and brightness of colors, or none of these.
   • Examine the canvas. Count the threads. Is the canvas modern or ancient?
   • Is there a patina on the back of the canvas?
   • Look for anachronisms. If the canvas of the 1800 painting is attached with a stapler, then something is wrong here.
4. 4 Look at the patina of the wood to determine if it is ancient. Determine how the frame is assembled, what nails and fasteners are used.
5. 5 Look for hairs from the brush. Copies of paintings sometimes have hairs left over from cheap tassels on the canvas itself.
6. 6 Use your sense of smell. If you manage to get close to her, smell her. The paint dries for a long time, it takes years for the picture to completely stop smelling.
7. 7 Decide how the painting makes you feel. Analyze everything together. For example, many fakes do not have sufficient color depth, layers. Photocopying a work is easy, but it is impossible to convey the layers of paint in a painting.
8. 8 Everything has to fit together. Check if everything is combined in the picture - for example, the frame and the canvas, it is also difficult to fake the patina.
9. 9 Order a job appraisal. If you really like a piece of art, you need to involve a third party who can impartially evaluate the picture. How can you be sure that the evaluator can be trusted? He must have a certificate from one or more professional associations of art appraisers, experience with a specific artist. Preferably he is not an art dealer or broker. An example is http://www.bernardewell.com, which is an expert on Salvador Dali, whose paintings are often copied. Explore how this artist's paintings are sold - at which auction houses are they sold, what size are they, when are they being sold, and with which agent?
10. 10 Please note that some dealers, in particular those on cruise ships, may try to trick the buyer by selling the painting at an overpriced price. Look for a signature and number - they should always be there. Unsigned paintings are of little interest because many such copies can be made.
11. 11 Explore the gallery. Many artworks will have gallery stickers or information on the back. Explore the gallery to see if this is the case. In some cases, there should be signs of wear on the frame and belt. The wooden edges cannot remain as sharp after 50 or 100 years, the frame itself must become drier. Study the artist's reputation. Learn that some writers signed blank forms and copied their signatures onto paintings. This is a negative sign, and therefore their paintings are less expensive. It is known that sometimes Salvador Dali did this.
12. 12 Be aware of scams when there is no signature on the picture, but it is in some accompanying document. It makes no sense to do so, because such a signature could have simply been copied.

Tips

• Ask for an assessment by mobile phone
• Have a guide on how to spot a fake with you
• Shop at an art gallery, yard sale, antique store, second-hand store, and more anytime.