Leonardo: The art and science of attribution, Royal Institution

In 2017, Christie’s sold a painting by Leonardo da Vinci previously presumed to be a copy of a lost original. Fetching a staggering $450.3 million, Salvator Mundi set a new record for the most expensive painting ever sold. To mark the 500th anniversary of the artist’s death, Martin Kemp and Larry Keith bring their expertise from the fields of Art History and Technical Studies to discuss the issues of establishing authenticity in artworks.

A slew of recent forgery scandals have called for a resurgent emphasis on scientifically-mandated authentication. In 2014, a report by Switzerland’s Fine Art Expert Institute stated that at least half of the artworks circulated in the market are fake. Last January, 21 forged paintings attributed to Amedeo Modigliani (one of the most copied artists in the world) were exhibited in Genoa’s Ducal Palace and last November, a federal court ordered a collector to repay Sotheby’s for supplying it with a fake painting attributed to 16th-century artist Parmigianino, which sold at auction for $842,500.

Kemp is Emeritus Research Professor in the History of Art at Trinity College, Oxford University. He is one of the world's leading experts on visualisation in art and science and was involved in the authentication of Salvator Mundi. Keith is Head of the Conservation Department at the National Gallery and oversees the conservation, restoration and technical study of Old Master paintings. In conversation with Philip Ball, who has written widely on the interactions between art and science, they will explain the role of scientific analytical techniques in establishing authenticity, whilst also revealing that the process requires much more than science alone.