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Fake or Fortune Season 13 Episode 2
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00:00our search for undiscovered masterpieces never ends but among the hundreds of pictures that
00:09arrive in our inbox there might just be a lost treasure a legendary name in art like impressionist
00:15master Renoir unearthing one is hard enough so what are our chances of finding two I'm heading
00:28to the gallery in hot pursuit hi Philip I'm on my way to see you great love to know more I've got a
00:34rather special picture I want to show you will you just wait to see what I've uncovered and with an
00:39artist with a prestige of Pierre Auguste Renoir the pressure is on so I want to show you this
00:45what you think oh good colors I see your landscape and raise you for the portrait that's very charming
00:53isn't it question is are these by Renoir one of them both of them neither of them
01:02we're on the hunt for lost treasure that is massively encouraging international art dealer Philip Mould
01:10and I have teamed up to investigate mysterious works of art I don't believe it but are they
01:16worthless fakes someone has put a signature on top dastardly or missing masterpieces this is indeed a
01:23work by Helen McNichol worth a fortune at 42 million thank you very much typical Renoir you wait for
01:38two pages for one and then to come along at once I've come to Bristol in southwest England to see a
01:46possible Renoir portrait that's been in the same family since the 1930s hello Jackie okay very nice to
01:56meet you thank you and now belongs to Jackie so here's the portrait here she is
02:08I have to say she's very striking I'm glad you like what you do with it no it's on my bedroom wall and I love it I'm
02:21planning to take it to an old age home so this will come with you yes my favorite thing so what do you
02:28know about the painting actually very little my uncle gave it to my aunt and it hung in their bedroom for many years
02:37years and was occasionally referred to as the Renoir and he may have bought it in the 30s so there's a
02:47possibility that the the name Renoir has been associated with this in some form or another since the 30s yes
02:55Pierre August Renoir was one of the leading lights of Impressionism best known for his exuberant scenes of Parisian
03:04life he was born in 1841 the son of a tailor and at the age of 13 was apprenticed in a porcelain factory where
03:12his talent for painting was recognized his first great success at the Paris Salon came in 1868 with a
03:21portrait of his lover lease with a parasol from his earliest works it was clear that he excelled portraits
03:30of young women and girls what this does feel like is a sketch it feels like something that's been
03:42captured quickly on canvas with oil and I think that gives it an animation I can see why you're so
03:49connected to it I love her eyes I just think it's a beautiful painting whoever painted it has caught the
03:57picture the character I think of a child and of course if it's by Renoir I mean that is a very magical name
04:04yes if it is proved to be Renoir will your response to this little girl change I don't think my response
04:13would change but it would just be very exciting and it would be really nice to know
04:20paintings by Renoir command the highest prices at auction at five million eight hundred thousand
04:30pounds sold thank you thank you one five two could Jackie's painting reach these dizzy heights if it
04:40were authenticated as possibly an early work by the artist it could be worth two to three hundred thousand
04:48you know possibly more well be lovely to know well Philip finds out more about the head of a young
04:59girl I've come to Cambridge on the trail of the landscape I've arranged to meet sisters Suki and Rebecca
05:08uh-huh well look at that well that's lovely isn't it
05:19it says run on the frame so that at least is encouraging yes that's not all it says on the
05:24label there's the title Paysage du Midi a landscape of the midi region of France or more simply southern
05:31landscape it even tells us that it's signed bottom right with the initial are trees look like they're
05:41blowing in the wind you could feel the water moving I think yeah you can and the light I mean south of
05:47France like the play of light on the picture it really picks it up I think hmm we know that late
05:52in life Renoir moved south to the village of Cagnes your mayor in 1908 he continued to paint the
05:59countryside around him this remarkable film from 1915 shows the master at work his hands stricken
06:10with arthritis he died four years later aged 78 could this little landscape date from those final
06:17years of Renoir's life how do you come to have what you hope is a Renoir well it was a birthday
06:24present that our father gave to our mother nice for her 50th birthday yes he said every lady should
06:30have a Renoir for their 50th what a guy yeah he was what did your mom say she was very taken about
06:36yeah she's delighted she roared with laughter and I think cried at the same time yeah when did your
06:41father buy it 1989 1989 yeah yeah for how much do you know 58,000 pounds yeah wow it's a lot now but
06:50certainly a lot then yeah so why have you come to us how can we help you he died in 2008 so my mom's
06:57now in a care home and so for financial reasons we'd like to sell it your mother going to care is
07:03upsetting in itself it is and then you know I know from personal experience these things cost a lot of
07:08money a lot of money and we had to clear out her entire house and and I think it brought a lot back
07:14about our dad as well because we were rediscovering items that he had bought well it's this painting
07:20has a great importance for you emotionally financially as well you know for your mom we
07:27wanted to auction it and the auction house insists that it has to be authenticated by the wilderness
07:31city Institute in Paris so you show the painting to them we got a letter a long long time later it
07:37took a several months yeah a very brief letter saying unfortunately they will not be adding it
07:43to the castle so they're not prepared to put it in the authorized list of run was works the catalogue
07:49resume so that leaves you can't sell it can't sell it as a Renoir for sure no oh my gosh so you're at
07:57this and past then yes yeah with the foremost Renoir Authority having rejected the work could this be a
08:06sophisticated forgery or is there still a chance that new evidence might prompt them to reopen the case
08:12we've a lot of work to do back in Bristol Jackie has been digging out information about the head of a
08:25young girl she's searching papers belonging to her uncle Pierre Maisonneuve who bought the painting in
08:32the 1930s a businessman originally from France he went on to open an art gallery in London in the 1950s
08:40I see here you have a letter is this is this addressed your uncle yes it was written in 1937 he's
08:49written to ask somebody if they could help authenticate in this painting so it's clear that
08:57your uncle is really keen to know about definitely the status of this picture yeah it seems Pierre's
09:04contact in Paris consulted a number of experts but found no clear answer only that it was perhaps a
09:12Renoir the only mention of the painting is on this list first of April 1960 is this something your uncle
09:21drew up I'd never seen it until recently it says here list of the various articles forming my art
09:29collection and does it mention the painting again well if you look at this page and read that line 1934 to
09:371937 he's referencing roughly when he acquired it head of a young girl a Renoir attributed to so 23 years
09:48later he's listing the picture as attributed to it would suggest that he didn't get the proof that he
09:55was seeking through his colleague in France absolutely so the mystery continues despite Jackie's uncle's best
10:05efforts the head of a young girl has been shrouded in uncertainty for over 80 years I'm keen to take a
10:12closer look so I'm carefully removing it from its frame this is tremendous because you could see things
10:21now that just weren't visible before one of the first it's just the complexity of the colors just how
10:28subtle the paint is my eye is immediately drawn to this very sketchy area notice how the white is is
10:36mixed with blue and that's just the sort of thing that one might expect from Renoir he had a way of
10:43making colors and and paint shine there's a lovely touch here it looks as though in the process of painting the
10:51earring the artist has changed its position so it starts further back and then moves forward what we
10:58call a pentiment a change of mind the coral earring a splash of vermilion is a clever artist trick creating
11:08a focal point also to be seen in genuine works by Renoir and something I also noticed now just how soft
11:17and subtle the lips are it's a suggestion of lips almost as if it's a moving mouth and in fact the
11:27overall impression actually is of something more animated a feeling indeed of a sketch from life
11:35there are reasons for optimism here and labels on the back to be explored
11:42back in Cambridge with Rebecca and Suki so this is your dad I'm keen to learn more about the man who
11:53bought the little landscape Evan Steadman self-made entrepreneur so tell me about this one he set up a
12:02jazz club in Ilford where he was from and this is a picture of him with my mum don't think he went to
12:07school much no Evan found his way into the art world in 1982 when he was asked to run the
12:15venerable Grosvenor house antiques fair he shook off its conservative image with me is the first
12:23organizer mr Evan Steadman even promoting the fair on breakfast television okay look if you do that
12:30all right determined to get it on somehow did he get to know the dealers did they become friends he
12:38did I think there were some of them that didn't approve of him having been appointed because he
12:42wasn't from an arts background he wasn't from that world do you have any documentation relating to this
12:50picture you know when he bought it who he bought it from that kind of thing yes this is just a little
12:54bit about its provenance so em nerd and co ny New York executives so nerd and co were very long
13:02established art dealers yes in New York and their executives of the Bernard M Douglas Trust New York
13:11so the person who owned this picture before your father was Bernard M Douglas I presume perhaps he was
13:19deceased in this gallery we're selling off his effects so we need to look into the art deals in
13:24New York nerd and co yes and then we can find out where Bernard M Douglas got it from hopefully yeah
13:33Fiona's asked me to take a look at the little landscape it's a chance to remove it from its bulky
13:39frame and get to grips with the structure of the picture I've got some observations I'm keen to share
13:48my feeling is if it's going to be Renoir it's a late work and the other curious thing about this
14:02picture is it's been extended so the original canvas has been put on a larger one effectively
14:09increasing the size and you can see a little bit of a painted strip down here there's quite a drawback
14:16with this painting I need to tell you about Rebecca Suki and their brother Ben the owners they submitted
14:22this to our old friend the Wildenstein Institute in Paris for authentication and the Wildenstein's
14:27turned it down mmm as this is signed are for Renoir it's as good as saying in this case it's an outright
14:34fake and you know where that takes us I mean having to reopen a case when something has been written off
14:40like that it's so difficult to which I can add another complication so there are effectively two
14:46authenticating bodies there's the Wildenstein Platner Institute who are doing at present a catalogue
14:52raisonne which is the authenticated list of the artist works indeed and then there is another one
14:57that's already been published called the Doberville catalogue to which the Doberville family are still
15:05adding so there's not one but two organizations that we have to impress blimey so are we gonna
15:11have to get both bodies then to authenticate the painting the art world more often than not require
15:17both so yes looking at the back of the painting there's some really interesting things here so
15:23potentially what looks like a signature here the annoying thing is this is a realigned canvas it's not
15:29the original canvas that with any luck Renoir used so therefore looking at something later slightly less
15:35compelling yes that is true I got quite excited about this on the back as well Nodler and Co New York so
15:43I assume this painting went through the hands of that gallery Nodler and Co and then I remember that
15:49there was quite a scandal attached there wasn't there yeah I mean I remember it well millions of pounds
15:54worth of effects went through the Nodler gallery but the point was they were a different type of
15:59pictures they weren't Renoir's these were American expressionists artists like Rothko and Pollock
16:05and then there's the date because that big forgery thing happened in the 90s well given that Evan
16:12bought this picture in 1989 it must have passed through the hands of the Nodler gallery sometime
16:17before that and there was no whiff of scandal about the Nodler gallery in those days how are you
16:22getting on with Jackie's portrait yeah I'm getting quietly excited about this there are a number of
16:27labels on the back as well which I think are worth looking into LBH number 1556 a Renoir okay but then
16:39there's also this label on the stretch at the back or rather two labels one pasted on another yes I can
16:46see it's a bit of writing here then what's under this one but I mean it's ridiculously tantalizing
16:51something's written beneath we we need to get to it and also and I think this is really important we
16:57need to find other early works by Renwer from the 1860s make the comparison all right well you click on
17:04with that and I will be working on the landscape I'm on my way to France on the hunt for early works by
17:18Pierre August Renoir such pieces are surprisingly rare Renoir is known to have destroyed some paintings he
17:27later came to dislike I've come to Limoges where Renoir was born the family left here for Paris when he
17:36was a child but the local museum houses a few important works including one from right at the start of his
17:43Renoir's career in 1864 this is the picture that I'm so keen to see I'm so pleased to encounter Mary
17:59Zélie Laporte in the flesh
18:05We're dealing with a really significant painting at the beginning of Renoir's career
18:11It's Renoir just getting going
18:13And if Jackie's picture is to be by the great artist
18:17It's gonna have to be in the the 1860s
18:22Mary Zélie was the sister of Renoir's close friend fellow student and artist
18:27Emile-Henri Laporte
18:30Renoir was a regular visitor with the Laporte family and there's an intimacy in this picture of 17 year old
18:37Mary Zélie which is perhaps also present in the head of a young girl
18:43The first comparison that I can make with Jackie's painting is the softness the naturalism of the skin tones
18:52There's a sort of rosy hue
18:55Even though this is early Renoir this is the beginning of the thing for which he becomes so famous
19:01And that is the the naturalistic engaging way in which he did particularly women's skin and flesh
19:07And then as you move in is that lovely sort of orangey pinkness of the lips and that
19:16Cupid bow stroke for the top lip is rather similar to our little girl
19:21And where I do feel there is a fabulous comparison to be made is the hair
19:25Notice those patchy almost slightly hesitant strokes either side of the parting
19:32We have something very similar with Jackie's girl
19:35It's almost as if you're looking at an artist who hasn't quite cracked the way to do a hairstyle
19:40But is getting there
19:42I'm so delighted to see it here
19:44So my gut feeling here is there are characteristics to do with the light the coloring that are similar
19:52I think there's enough stylistic evidence here
19:56To feel quite excited
19:57Back in London I'm researching the southern landscape and I've been checking out the provenance written on the frame
20:19Beginning with the claim that it was from the estate of Bernard M Douglas
20:22It seems there were two Bernard M Douglas's father and son
20:31Looking at this obituary of Bernard M Douglas senior
20:34He died in 1944 when he was 76
20:37And he was clearly a very successful man
20:39He was a vice-present director of bourgeois which is a makeup company and of Chanel no less
20:45I've also come across an inventory of his estate
20:48And it's clear that his apartment was full of art and antiques
20:52And there's a list of his paintings
20:55Plenty of them
20:57But no Renoir
20:59Perhaps our Bernard M Douglas was not the senior
21:03But the son
21:05And according to the writing on the frame
21:07The Nodler Gallery were the executives of his estate
21:10So is there a link between Bernard M Douglas Junior and the Nodler Gallery?
21:15Because if the Nodler Gallery bought or sold this picture
21:20That would mean you have a renowned gallery
21:23Treating this picture as a genuine Renoir
21:25The Getty in Los Angeles holds archives from the Nodler Gallery
21:30And we've checked them for records relating to the southern landscape
21:34This is really fascinating
21:37Look, we've got details here that on April 29th, 1960
21:41Bernard Douglas drops the picture, along with a few other paintings, off at the Nodler Gallery
21:45Why?
21:47We can find out
21:49Because here, it shows it was there for restoring and framing
21:53There's a few details, there's Renoir landscape, clean the surface, a few other bits and bobs
21:58And then, on the 9th of June, 1960, Bernard Douglas picks it up
22:03As far as I can tell from my searches, the Nodler Gallery didn't buy or sell the picture
22:12It appears simply that Bernard Douglas dropped it off, then picked it up again
22:17There's even a number here, 58710
22:22And that's the number on the back of the picture
22:27We've also checked Bernard M Douglas Junior's will
22:30And there's no mention of the painting
22:33It means we don't know where he got the painting from
22:36Or when it changed hands
22:38It's not great news
22:40It means the technical evidence is going to need to do a lot of work for us
22:46We need to put both paintings under the microscope
22:50So I'm heading to the Courtauld Institute in London
22:53A world-leading centre for the scientific study of art
22:57Where Professor Aviva Bernstock
22:58Hi Aviva
23:01Hi, hello, nice to see you
23:02We'll be able to put the pictures through their paces
23:05It's fabulous to see these together for the first time
23:08Possibly at the beginning and the end of one of the most famous careers in Impressionist art
23:14The Alpha and Omega of Renoir
23:16Yeah, I think they're absolutely amazing, these two pictures
23:22Just as you say, an early picture, an early portrait
23:25It's really quite nicely painted
23:27But it's also got this very yellow varnish on it
23:30Which perhaps is hiding the tonal contrasts which were there earlier
23:34And then, well, a small late landscape
23:39It seems so swift and fluent and almost effortless
23:45Yeah, I mean, it certainly looks like the paint was applied with a habit of a hand
23:49I know I say this almost every time, but more than ever before, it seems to me, we need your help
23:56Because we don't have any early provenance
23:59So any science, any empirical evidence that you can give us could be really valuable in this case
24:05I'll do my best
24:07While Aviva gets to work, examining, photographing and scanning the pictures
24:13I've invited Rebecca and Suki to an urgent meeting
24:17I have news about the southern landscape, I need them to hear
24:21We wrote to the Daubervilles, authors of the published catalogue Raisonnée on Renoir
24:26To ask if they had any knowledge of the picture
24:29They've just replied
24:30So we've been doing some digging and have managed to establish that your painting
24:37That your father gave to your mother
24:40Was also shown to another organisation, Dauberville, a catalogue raisonnée organisation
24:45Have a look at this
24:47In 1985, that's four years before he gave it to your mother
24:53Ce tableau nous a été soumis en 1985
24:57This painting's been submitted to us in 1985
25:01Has not been retained for inclusion in our catalogue raisonnée
25:07Of Pierre-Auguste Renoir
25:09Hmm, not good
25:12That means therefore, twice now, your painting has been turned down
25:17First in the mid-1980s, and then more recently
25:21We knew the southern landscape had been turned down by the Wildenstein Institute
25:27Who were preparing the new catalogue raisonnée
25:29But not that it had already been rejected by the other authenticating body
25:35It's a blow
25:37Time for us to regroup at the gallery and decide next steps
25:42Hi
25:44Hey Philip
25:46So, how are you getting on with the portraits?
25:48Well, we've had some interesting things through from Aviva
25:51The most startling of which is this x-ray
25:53Have a look carefully at that face
25:56Oh yes, I love the way it's just peering out
25:59But what I'm particularly impressed by are those fiddly, almost nervous brushstrokes
26:03Somehow puts me in mind of Renoir
26:06Okay
26:07But we've also been sent through a pigment analysis
26:12Ground lead white chalk, flesh lips and earring, vermilion and iron
26:18Oh, and a very nice sentence at the bottom there
26:22Exactly what we want, all the pigments are consistent with the work from the 1860s
26:27Perfect
26:28And I've also had a few more interesting insights
26:31We've had an infrared done of that curious label on the back
26:35Do you see that A there?
26:38And possibly an R
26:40But I need to get a closer look and see if we can get that label off
26:44Which I think is possible
26:46Okay, let's talk about the landscape for a minute
26:48We know that not only have the Wildensteins turned it down
26:51But also the other authenticating body, the Daubervilles turned it down in 1985
26:55Which makes it really tricky
26:57I think what it's going to come down to
26:58Is there anyone who thinks it looks like a Renoir?
27:01And particularly a late Renoir
27:03Stylistic analysis, that's where we've got to go now
27:06Have you got anyone in mind?
27:07Well, yes I have
27:09The Barnes Foundation
27:11It was started by Albert Barnes
27:13An industrialist in the early 20th century
27:15Fabulously wealthy, made all his money from, of all things, antiseptic use in hospitals
27:20Particularly, interesting fact, for venereal disease
27:23Anyway, he was a great collector of art
27:26And he collected no fewer than 181 Renoirs
27:32That's my type of client
27:34It certainly is
27:36And not only 181 of them
27:38But he particularly liked late Renoirs
27:40Which is what we think we might be looking at with our picture
27:41So, I'm going to talk to the foundation to see if they can make a useful stylistic comparison
27:46See if that takes us any further
27:52I'm eager to uncover the mysterious writing
27:56Glimpsed in Aviva's images of the labels
27:58On the back of head of a young girl
28:00I've asked picture conservator, Rebecca Gregg
28:03To do some expert label removal
28:06Could this help us to unravel the picture's knotty provenance?
28:09Rebecca is carefully soaking the labels with water to loosen the glue
28:29The top label's just floating away and beneath there's 262 written on the big label
28:32And there's writing beneath the labels on the stretcher
28:36It's hard to make out
28:39But it could be Renoir
28:43Just checking because there's something stuck to the bottom
28:46Of the stretcher bar
28:50It's another label
28:58RTS
28:59Underneath the stretcher member is another piece of label
29:03Underneath the stretcher member is another piece of label
29:06What's the rest of the A?
29:08Beaux Arts?
29:10So, a pencil inscription saying Renoir
29:19A large label numbered 262
29:21And the little fragment of a label that must say Beaux Arts
29:25Or Fine Arts
29:27Fascinating leads to pursue
29:29Meanwhile, I have an important meeting at Phillips Gallery
29:35And Rebecca has been joined by her brother, Ben
29:39We've managed to secure an interview with Martha Lucy
29:42A senior curator at the Barnes Foundation
29:45And a specialist in Renoir's late works
29:47Hi there
29:49Hello
29:51Hi, nice to see you again
29:53She's been comparing genuine Renoirs in the collection
29:55With images of southern landscape
29:57And she's spotted some distinct similarities with a picture called
30:00Woman with hat in a landscape
30:02So there's this picture of a woman sitting in a field
30:06That's a painting that's at the Barnes
30:08Your picture reminded me of this
30:10Yeah, I can see that
30:12The palette and the brushstrokes
30:13Yeah, for sure
30:14And just the way of working, the type of subject
30:16Even though there's no figure in yours
30:18Especially the greens and yellows
30:20Yeah, the colour scheme
30:21And just the way you can feel the wind
30:23Sort of in the trees
30:25Yes, yes
30:27The one that you have is so typical of what he was doing
30:30During the last years
30:32Renoir had this really interesting way of working late in his career
30:38From around 1900 to 1919
30:40And he would paint multiple sketches on one larger canvas
30:46Martha has sent through a photograph of a canvas
30:50One of a number taken a century ago
30:52To record pictures in Renoir's studio after his death
30:56That would be on one large canvas
30:58Yes
30:59All those individual pictures, wow
31:01And of completely different subjects as well
31:03Yes, completely different subjects
31:04So sometimes on one canvas you'll see a sketch of a head
31:09And next to a sketch of a landscape
31:13Most of these groups of sketches were broken up into individual pictures
31:17And sold separately
31:19In fact, Martha has sent an image of a painting now in the Barnes collection
31:23That was once part of this very canvas
31:25The obvious question then, Martha, is Ben and Rebecca's picture
31:31Is that in any of the photographs?
31:32Yeah
31:34You know, so I looked really, I know
31:37I looked really, really
31:39You've got to look closer
31:41I looked so closely
31:43But unfortunately, no
31:44Well that's disappointing
31:45Yeah
31:46Because if it had been, that would have been job done
31:48That would make life a lot easier, wouldn't it?
31:50Bad luck
31:51But I'm keen to know whether Martha has noticed any other technical similarities
31:57One of the things that we see in the Barnes pictures that have been cut down
32:02When you look at the edges, you can see that the pictures have been lined
32:06Which means that another canvas has sort of been put behind them
32:09Which is pretty common practice at that time
32:11So if the smaller fragment was cut out of the larger canvas
32:15And then placed on another canvas
32:17Yes
32:18Before it was put on a wooden stretcher, you know, to be put into a frame
32:21Yes, you can see in the still life actually
32:24In the top left corner
32:26You can sort of see how there's brown paint that comes over the edges
32:30Of the tape
32:32Oh yeah, look here, do you see what I mean?
32:34Just a tiny bit
32:36And why would that be?
32:38Because if this picture had gone to a dealer
32:41And they had cut it up
32:43And were intending to sell it
32:45They probably wanted to sort of fill out some of the corners
32:48To make it look more complete
32:50And so looking at Ben and Rebecca's picture then
32:53Oh
32:55And that appears to be what's happened with yours, doesn't it?
32:57Around the edges
32:58Do you think, if this is by Renoir, that these extra bits of paint we can see that sort of
33:05Bled over onto the lining and the tape that's keeping that lining in place
33:10Do you think that's another hand then? Someone has done that?
33:14That would be my guess, that somebody else has done it
33:17Like probably a dealer after they've gotten it from Renoir
33:20If this were a fake, why would whoever did it go back and repaint over it?
33:27It just doesn't make sense
33:29They do the whole thing at once
33:31Exactly
33:33But if the picture was cut from a larger canvas of sketches, what about the little red R?
33:39We know that Renoir sold some of these multi-image canvases before he died
33:47And then did the dealer favour and said, look, I'll just put a little R on each one
33:54He would have given his blessing, as it were, by putting an R on as well so that it could be used
33:58Yes
34:00The fact that it may be a fragment, does that make it any less of a Renoir?
34:04Oh, that's such a good question, no, absolutely not, no
34:09We know that he gave his blessing to do that sometimes
34:13And, you know, the most important thing is, like, is it his hand?
34:17Still his hand, still his paintwork, yeah, his idea
34:21Yeah, so having looked at all these pictures and with your extensive knowledge, Martha
34:27Of Renoir, late Renoir in particular, and of fragments
34:30You know, the big question has to be, do you think Ben and Rebecca's picture could be a Renoir?
34:42I do, I really do
34:44When I first saw the painting, my gut feeling was like, oh, yes, of course
34:50I've looked so long and so hard at these tiny works from the last decade of his career
34:57The brushwork, the palette, the subject, it just, it looks right to me
35:02Gosh!
35:03All of it
35:04It's encouraging that Martha thinks the southern landscape could be right
35:09Even if she hasn't seen it in the flesh
35:12And I've got some equally upbeat news to share with Jackie about the head of a young girl
35:17So Jackie, I know you're familiar with the front of your picture, but we've been looking at the back
35:31So you've got two
35:33Two labels, one top left and one on the stretch of R
35:36We began by looking at the label in the top left hand corner
35:40L.B.H.A. Renoir
35:44So what would the initials be the name of a gallery?
35:49Well, we looked into that
35:51This refers to a gallery that was active in London in the 1920s and 30s
35:57Right
35:59Called London Barbizon House
36:01Oh, right
36:03Barbizon House was set up in 1918 by Scottish art dealer and editor of the Art Journal
36:08David Crowell Thompson
36:11And it's possible that this is where Jackie's uncle bought the painting in the 1930s
36:16Further down you see this label here
36:20This looks extraordinary, I can't read that at all
36:24Well, very often leading art dealers would have their own labels, their own printed design
36:28And if we look at this design here and compare it to a label that is from another art dealing company
36:38That was founded in the 20s in London called Alex Reid and Lefebvre Limited
36:45And it seems to me that this lozenge shaped label would indicate that yours could well have come from Lefebvre
36:52Definitely, yes
36:55Now we've approached them, tried to find out more information
36:59Unfortunately, we haven't succeeded, but it gets better
37:03Oh!
37:05We removed this top label and found beneath it, yet another label
37:09262
37:12Mm-hmm
37:13Romy Le
37:14Romy Le
37:16There is not enough to identify a gallery, but it surely places the picture in France
37:22Now beneath this label
37:25We found
37:27This inscription
37:30This says Renoir
37:31Ah!
37:33Now, it was clearly written a long time ago because it's beneath a couple of labels which date to the early to mid-20th century
37:43And of course, Pierre bought it between 1934 and 1937
37:50If your uncle bought it around about that time, it was already a painting with history and with provenance
37:58We now know that early in that history, the name Renoir was already attached to it
38:06But beneath the stretcher bar, Rebecca, who's been restoring this picture, has managed to discover a little fragment of a label
38:14Beaux-Arts
38:16The words Beaux-Arts are used generically quite a lot, but what this could refer to is Ecole des Beaux-Arts
38:22Ecole des Beaux-Arts, which was where Renoir studied in the 1860s
38:27Oh!
38:29It's pushing us back to the time when the great young artist was working
38:34The question is, is it enough to take us back to the magic name Renoir?
38:41Well, who knows?
38:43Phillips enlisted me to follow the trail of the label fragments to Paris
38:53And I've come to the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, or School of Fine Arts, which trained the leading artists of the day
38:59This is the very building young Renoir would have arrived at in 1862
39:04Could this place have a connection to Jackie's head of a young girl?
39:14I'm hoping Head of Collections Alice Tomine Berrada has the answers
39:19When Renoir studied here, what kind of art did he study?
39:22At the time of Renoir, the school taught mainly drawing. The school taught also the perspective, the anatomy, and the history
39:37And they offered courses in these disciplines
39:42And we can see here what these courses correspond to the perspective
39:47These are very techniques, very techniques
39:54Oh dear, this technical, academic drawing doesn't sound like the intimate, charming brushwork of Jackie's picture
40:02But could the label fragments still be a lead?
40:06Can I show you the picture that we are investigating?
40:10It's a portrait
40:12Hang on
40:13On the back of this picture, there is this stamp which looks like Beaux-Arts
40:21Could that be a stamp from here, from l'Ecole des Beaux-Arts?
40:25I'm not sure
40:29In fact, we have the impression that he has just written Beaux-Arts and not Ecole
40:32We don't see the term Ecole above
40:35So in fact, if it's…
40:37In any case, the typography doesn't date from Renoir's years
40:42For me, it's a bit more tardive
40:44I can see what Alice means
40:45In catalogues of the 1860s, the fashionable lettering looks narrower
40:50Rounder fonts like the one on our label seem to appear in the early 20th century
40:56So you think the lettering is actually much later than…
41:00Right
41:02Right, okay
41:04Understanding more about the conservative art world of 1860s Paris
41:08It occurs to me that a little unfinished portrait like this may not have been exhibited or sold at the time
41:15Perhaps only reaching the art market at the height of Renoir's fame
41:20But that would mean my trail has run cold
41:23While Fionn is in Paris, I've taken the helm with the landscape
41:33At the Courtauld Institute, Aviva has been working with conservation scientist Nathan Daly
41:40And they're ready to reveal the results of their tests on the southern landscape
41:45I've invited Rebecca and Suki to join us
41:51Oh, hello
41:52Hi
41:53Hi
41:55So…
41:56What has your microscope been able to reveal?
41:58Lots of different things
41:59First, something quite interesting
42:00And that's the abraded surface of the priming on the canvas
42:04So the canvas is raw and then there's a white priming that's been put on
42:08And you can see that it's been rubbed down before the paint has been applied
42:12So you can see the tips of the canvas weave poking through the priming layer
42:16I see
42:17You see that?
42:18So the artist, let's hope it's Renoir, has rubbed it down
42:20Either the artist or it was bought like that
42:23This is positive
42:24Genuine late Renoir works often have similar traits
42:28And a braided ground layer on a slightly coarse canvas
42:31It's amazing how much texture there is
42:33Yeah
42:34And some lovely fluid rich bits of colour
42:39Right, well you can see it's very directly painted
42:41Yeah
42:42You can see that pure pigment's been used and sometimes mixtures of pigment
42:45perhaps using the same brush
42:46It's amazing seeing it so close up
42:48Yeah
42:49The way the colours really ping out at you
42:51And how much colour there is
42:53It's encouraging to see a use of pigments very like Renoir's own
42:59No anomalies, so far
43:01Next, to move beyond the human eye
43:04To reveal the precise pigments used
43:07The team have used Macro XRF
43:09Which directs x-rays at the surface of the painting
43:12And allows them to build up a map of the chemical elements present
43:16The big question is
43:18Are the pigments Nathan has detected in the landscape
43:21Those that Renoir is known to have used?
43:25I can bring up the lead distribution map
43:28Here you can see
43:30So here what you can see is lead white
43:32Was used mixed with different pigments
43:34Or on its own for different elements of the painting
43:36In a way it almost looks like an x-ray
43:38It's not an x-ray, it's just where the lead was used
43:41A good start
43:43Renoir made heavy use of lead white
43:45Which dried fast and could be used thickly
43:48To create his characteristic luminosity
43:51I can also pull up the barium map
43:55Which shows where barium based materials might have been used
43:59Yeah, so a barium might be barium sulphate or lithopone
44:04So it was a material which was added by paint manufacturers
44:07To a whole range of different paints
44:08Look, we need to know that Renoir didn't make his own paints
44:12He would have bought them
44:14Barium sulphate was developed in the late 18th century
44:18And was used regularly as a filler in paints of Renoir's time
44:22So, so far so good
44:24Next up, titanium
44:27Titanium white is highly significant
44:30Because it was newly invented in the early 20th century
44:33This is one we don't want to find in the southern landscape
44:36You can see it in the green map
44:40Titanium white
44:42It seems to be used in the priming layer
44:48You mean the canvas?
44:50Yes, so the canvas is then coated with the white material
44:53That we saw under the microscope
44:55Which has been abraded and rubbed
44:57But in that layer, underneath the paint, is titanium
44:59And these darker areas are regions where paint has been applied on top
45:05And is blocking the titanium signal from underneath
45:08So it does appear to be associated with the canvas and its priming
45:12Titanium dioxide was first marketed as a paint late in 1920
45:18And that's exactly a year after Renoir's death
45:22Finding it in a picture we've all found so compelling is a shock for everyone
45:26Just, just hang on a moment here, so, I mean what you're seeing is quite serious
45:34Nathan and I had a little disagreement about this when we first did the scans
45:38And he showed me the results
45:40And I thought, oh, you know, how I missed something
45:42But he post-processed the information
45:44And I think we can be quite sure that titanium is there
45:47And I also confirmed it using another technique, electron microscopy
45:50So, it is in the priming layer
45:55Not good news, is it really?
45:56It doesn't sound hopeful
45:58I mean, I have to say, personally, I wasn't expecting an anomaly like this
46:02Because...
46:04It's pretty conclusive, isn't it?
46:05I mean, it's science, it's factual evidence
46:09Yeah, it's for me the most challenging thing that I've seen
46:12I'll take a fortune
46:13This seems like the end of the road for the southern landscape
46:19But I want to pursue one last line of inquiry
46:23I'm looking into the production of titanium white in the early 20th century
46:30To see if there's any way the pigment could have found its way into a genuine painting by Renoir
46:35Rebecca, Suki and Ben have come to the gallery to find out what we've uncovered
46:45Hello, hello, hello, hello
46:48As you know, with this picture, we have an issue
46:53And that is titanium white, which was found in the ground
46:57That is the layer between the canvas and the paint strokes
47:00So what we've done is try and ascertain
47:04Was there any evidence of titanium white before 1920?
47:09So it turns out that researchers were in fact looking at synthetic titanium white as early as 1908
47:17And then the commercial manufacture began in the States in 1916
47:22And in Norway, of all places, in 1918
47:24So suddenly, it looks like there might be a bit of wiggle room with those dates, potentially
47:31Could it be that the people who made these pre-prepared canvases
47:35Could have used titanium in those
47:38And thus, Renoir unwittingly was using titanium
47:42So what I did was I went back to the Barnes Foundation
47:45And what they very kindly agreed to do was look at a selection of their paintings
47:50Analyse them to see if they had titanium white in them
47:53So they chose five
47:56Wow
47:57Of the ones they thought closest to yours
48:02I know, I don't know what this says
48:04So let's see what they say
48:10You're making me really nervous now
48:13OK
48:15It's a long shot, all right
48:16But anyway, they have done the work
48:18Dear Fake or Fortune, we just finished yesterday
48:23We did not find titanium in any of the ground layers
48:30We did note titanium in a paint layer in one area
48:33But upon examination, it was clearly restoration paint applied later
48:36Oh dear
48:39Oh dear
48:40I'm really sorry, I mean
48:42It was always going to be a long shot
48:43Yeah
48:45So on the basis that this is not by Renoir
48:48What a dashed, clever fake this is
48:53OK, let's just rub a bit of salt in the wound here
48:55Hmm
48:58If it was by Renoir, what would it have been worth?
49:01£100,000
49:03God
49:05Yes, and given that it now almost certainly is not by Renoir
49:09God, I can't bear to say this, probably about £1,500
49:13As much as that?
49:15More than I'd have thought
49:17I mean, I feel particularly bad
49:19Because I know this was part of your family folklore
49:21You know, your father gave it to your mother
49:23You've got the picture and everything, the champagne
49:25And also you wanted to put the money to good use
49:27Yeah
49:28You know, for your mum
49:30Are you bitterly disappointed?
49:32In a sense, we're no worse off than we were
49:35We had hope that we might find something new
49:37And we haven't, and yes, it's disappointing, but...
49:40It's been a great journey, though
49:41It has
49:42I appreciate all your hard investigative work
49:45Yeah, sorry it didn't...
49:47It didn't produce dividends, you know
49:49Well, we've really...
49:50Some you win, some you lose
49:51Exactly
50:00Somewhat disappointed, for sure
50:02But perhaps not completely unexpected
50:06It doesn't change our feeling for the painting
50:09It's still part of our family story
50:12Part of our parents' love for each other
50:14Yeah
50:15And so it's still a great painting for us
50:18We still love it
50:20And I think as well, working all three of us together
50:23To research and look into this
50:25Has really bonded and connected us
50:27And that's been a lovely thing
50:28We still love it
50:32Ben, Suki and Rebecca are putting on a brave face
50:36The art world can be cruel sometimes
50:41We're refocusing our efforts on the head of a young girl
50:45Before we send the picture to Paris
50:47To be scrutinised by the committees
50:49We've taken Aviva's advice about removing the discoloured varnish
50:54Conservator Rebecca Gregg is cleaning the portrait
50:58Revealing it as, perhaps, Renoir saw it
51:03I'm just using a little bit of solvent now
51:06To dissolve the varnish layer
51:08That's what you can see fluorescing in the ultraviolet light
51:11It's only a very thin layer
51:14But it is remarkable how big a change it makes to the painting
51:17Having a sort of filter of yellow across the surface
51:19The time has come
51:27The leading authorities on Renoir have studied the freshly cleaned portrait
51:32And have sent through their decisions
51:34The thing with Jackie's picture is we've got not one, but two committees that we have to convince
51:40But at least they haven't turned it down before
51:42So we haven't got that hurdle to overcome
51:45But I think the thing is with these committees, these custodians of an artist's reputation
51:51Is it's not so much we have to convince them to say yes
51:54We have to find a good enough reason for them not to say no
51:58And have we done that?
52:00The longer I've spent with this picture, the more I believe it
52:06But if it is by the great man Renoir, it's going to have to be an early painting
52:12It's also unfinished, it's a sketch
52:15You know, those are both significant issues on their own
52:19So if we're going to get this past the authorities, it's going to require a connoisseurial leap of faith
52:25And I just don't know whether we're going to get it
52:28Jackie has come to the gallery ready for the final verdicts
52:35And a reunion with her beloved portrait
52:38So, Jackie, as you know, we've had this painting cleaned
52:43And for the first time, I think, in the flesh, you'll now be able to see what it looks like
52:48May I turn her over?
52:50Oh, please do
52:51What are you?
52:54Here she is
52:57That is amazing
52:59It really, really looks different
53:03She's beautiful
53:06I love her gaze, actually
53:08The clarity with the eyes now is just so stunning
53:11She has joined us a little bit more
53:13There's a bit more presence now, isn't there?
53:15A bit more presence, yes
53:17As we are falling in love with this picture all over again
53:20We need to find out if anyone else has fallen in love with this
53:23And believes it is, in fact, by Renoir
53:25As you know, we've had to take it to two authenticating bodies
53:29Wildenstein and Dauberville
53:31To try and understand whether this is or is not by Renoir, in their opinion
53:34So, Philip, if this is not by Renoir, how much would this painting be worth?
53:41Even without the name Renoir, I think we are talking two, three, four, five thousand pounds
53:48I honestly do
53:50So, if it is by the great Renoir, then
53:53We're talking about something completely different, aren't we?
53:55As it's cleaned, it looks even more significant
53:59We're looking at half a million pounds
54:04What can one say?
54:06Oh my goodness, the difference is so enormous
54:08And it all comes down to what's in these
54:11Well, put me out of my misery
54:15Do you want to start? You've got the response from the Wildensteins
54:20Yes, and I can see that there is one clear line
54:24Following research, the scholarly review, the WPI, that is the Wildenstein Plattner Institute
54:33Has determined that the work will not be included in the catalogue
54:39Jackie, I'm really sorry, they've said no
54:42They've said no
54:43Right
54:45Okay
54:47So, one down
54:49One to go
54:55This is from GPF Doubleville, it is in French
54:59Nous avons le regret de vous informer
55:02We regret to inform you that this work cannot be listed in our archives
55:07As an authentic work by Pierre-Auguste Renoir
55:12Oh Jackie
55:14I'm really sorry
55:16So, no idea as to who could have painted it
55:20They say, well let me get, there's another sentence
55:23If there arises a significant and certain provenance, if that could be established, we could eventually change our opinion
55:35So, hang on a minute then
55:38They're saying, at the moment they don't think it's by Renoir
55:40But that is a little window of opportunity, isn't it?
55:44The fact that they're saying, should a provenance come forward, they're prepared to reconsider it
55:51Would suggest to me, that they feel, I think, little as we do
55:54That there is an argument, stylistically, for this being by Renoir
55:59The situation we're in is that they both say no, and that's what we've got to deal with
56:03Yes, yes
56:04Even though Doubleville is saying, if you find some more provenance, I'll take another look
56:07And they don't generally say that kind of thing
56:09No
56:10When we get these verdicts, so I think that is really important
56:13How do you feel about your picture now?
56:15Oh, I still love it
56:16Good
56:17Yes, yes
56:19I've always liked it
56:22And it doesn't really matter that much
56:26Maybe I shouldn't say that, because it would have been wonderful to have owned a Renoir
56:32But it'll go back where it was hanging before
56:36So you'll take it back and hang it on the wall and...
56:38It'll go back in the same place and it'll look at me every evening
56:43We've taken on two possible Renoirs
56:47And we've lost
56:49It was always going to be a tall order, wasn't it?
56:52With one of the great names like Renoir, to find a new undiscovered work
56:56I mean, that would have been just extraordinary
56:59And then the landscape, it looked really good to begin with
57:02But it was clearly an outright deception for a forgery
57:06I can't help feeling a little bit sad though, about the portrait
57:10The name Renoir seemed to me to fit
57:15But Doberville have left the door ajar
57:19And who knows, perhaps one day that elusive piece of provenance may suddenly emerge
57:26If you think you have an undiscovered masterpiece or other precious object
57:32Contact us at bbc.co.uk
57:35Slash fake or fortune
57:36Bbc.co.uk
57:40F window
57:43Blast G."Bc.co.uk
57:47Spendido game
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