Bords de la Seine a Argenteuil
Encyclopedia
is an oil painting owned by Englishman David Joel. The painting is by Claude Monet
and is a landscape depicting the River Seine
at Argenteuil
in France.
It was featured on the BBC TV programme, Fake or Fortune?
.
in Paris. The Wildenstein Institute has examined the painting only once, after Daniel Wildenstein
had died, but does not accept it as genuine. He only ever saw a poor photograph of it in Monet's obituary. Fiona Bruce
(a journalist) and Philip Mould
(an art dealer and historian) investigated the painting in the TV programme Fake or Fortune?
broadcast on 19 June 2011. The Art Access Research Centre scanned the picture using high resolution, infrared
and X-Ray
photography. At the Lumiere Technology Centre the picture was scanned using a 240Mega-pixel camera and 13 different light filters. The resulting image was examined by Iris Schaefer, the head of Conservation at the Wallraf-Richartz-Museum in Cologne, who has previously uncovered a fake Monet which had been accepted by the Wildenstien Institute. She declared the Joel painting genuine. The chemical analysis of paints used in the painting and signature were studied by Dr Nicholas Eastaugh (Courtauld Institute of Art
) and were found to conform precisely with Monet's palette and the mediums he used in 1873.
The programme had the brushwork and signature examined by experts who concluded that they were by Monet. The programme concluded that the painting was genuine, an opinion shared by a number of experts, including Monet scholars Professor John House (Courtauld Institute of Art
), Professor Paul Hayes Tucker, and others. However the Wildenstein Institute refused to accept this, thereby choosing to ignore the latest research, and continued to regard the painting as a fake, a decision based predominantly on the connoisseurship of the late Daniel Wildenstein
.
in Cairo. The museum records show a photograph of the painting which had been acquired by Khalil from the Paris dealer Georges Petit
. There is another sticker on the painting with the number 5575. Stylistically, this label matches others which are known to be from the George Petit gallery and the number implies that it was in Petit's gallery before May 1920 and thus before Monet's death in 1926.
The evidence suggests the following provenance:
auction in New York for $4.8 million in 2005.
Claude Monet
Claude Monet was a founder of French impressionist painting, and the most consistent and prolific practitioner of the movement's philosophy of expressing one's perceptions before nature, especially as applied to plein-air landscape painting. . Retrieved 6 January 2007...
and is a landscape depicting the River Seine
Seine
The Seine is a -long river and an important commercial waterway within the Paris Basin in the north of France. It rises at Saint-Seine near Dijon in northeastern France in the Langres plateau, flowing through Paris and into the English Channel at Le Havre . It is navigable by ocean-going vessels...
at Argenteuil
Argenteuil
Argenteuil is a commune in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. Argenteuil is a sub-prefecture of the Val-d'Oise department, the seat of the arrondissement of Argenteuil....
in France.
It was featured on the BBC TV programme, Fake or Fortune?
Fake or Fortune?
Fake or Fortune? is a 2011 BBC television series which examines the provenance of notable artworks. It is presented by journalist Fiona Bruce and art dealer and art historian Philip Mould.There are four episodes:...
.
Authenticity
The painting was acquired by Joel in 1992 for £40,000. Joel is an art historian who has published two important art books, the first a catalogue raisonné, the second a history of Monet at Vétheuil and on the Norman Coast. The painting had previously been offered for sale at auction, but failed to reach its £500,000 reserve. The title along with the date, 1875, appears on the frame, and there is a painted signature of Claude Monet. In the years since he purchased it, Joel has attempted to establish it as an authentic Monet. The most widely accepted authority on Monet's work is the catalogue raisonné published by the Wildenstein InstituteDaniel Wildenstein
Daniel Leopold Wildenstein was a French art dealer and scholar, as well as a leading thoroughbred race horse owner and breeder....
in Paris. The Wildenstein Institute has examined the painting only once, after Daniel Wildenstein
Daniel Wildenstein
Daniel Leopold Wildenstein was a French art dealer and scholar, as well as a leading thoroughbred race horse owner and breeder....
had died, but does not accept it as genuine. He only ever saw a poor photograph of it in Monet's obituary. Fiona Bruce
Fiona Bruce
Fiona Elizabeth Bruce is a British journalist, newsreader and television presenter. Since joining the BBC in 1989, she has gone on to present many flagship programmes for the corporation including the BBC News at Six, BBC News at Ten, Crimewatch, Call My Bluff and, most recently, Antiques Roadshow...
(a journalist) and Philip Mould
Philip Mould
Philip Mould OBE is an English art dealer and art historian, specialising in British portraits.-Biography:Mould has made a number of art discoveries, particularly in the works of Thomas Gainsborough, and Tudor portraiture...
(an art dealer and historian) investigated the painting in the TV programme Fake or Fortune?
Fake or Fortune?
Fake or Fortune? is a 2011 BBC television series which examines the provenance of notable artworks. It is presented by journalist Fiona Bruce and art dealer and art historian Philip Mould.There are four episodes:...
broadcast on 19 June 2011. The Art Access Research Centre scanned the picture using high resolution, infrared
Infrared
Infrared light is electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength longer than that of visible light, measured from the nominal edge of visible red light at 0.74 micrometres , and extending conventionally to 300 µm...
and X-Ray
X-ray
X-radiation is a form of electromagnetic radiation. X-rays have a wavelength in the range of 0.01 to 10 nanometers, corresponding to frequencies in the range 30 petahertz to 30 exahertz and energies in the range 120 eV to 120 keV. They are shorter in wavelength than UV rays and longer than gamma...
photography. At the Lumiere Technology Centre the picture was scanned using a 240Mega-pixel camera and 13 different light filters. The resulting image was examined by Iris Schaefer, the head of Conservation at the Wallraf-Richartz-Museum in Cologne, who has previously uncovered a fake Monet which had been accepted by the Wildenstien Institute. She declared the Joel painting genuine. The chemical analysis of paints used in the painting and signature were studied by Dr Nicholas Eastaugh (Courtauld Institute of Art
Courtauld Institute of Art
The Courtauld Institute of Art is a self-governing college of the University of London specialising in the study of the history of art. The Courtauld is one of the premier centres for the teaching of art history in the world; it was the only History of Art department in the UK to be awarded a top...
) and were found to conform precisely with Monet's palette and the mediums he used in 1873.
The programme had the brushwork and signature examined by experts who concluded that they were by Monet. The programme concluded that the painting was genuine, an opinion shared by a number of experts, including Monet scholars Professor John House (Courtauld Institute of Art
Courtauld Institute of Art
The Courtauld Institute of Art is a self-governing college of the University of London specialising in the study of the history of art. The Courtauld is one of the premier centres for the teaching of art history in the world; it was the only History of Art department in the UK to be awarded a top...
), Professor Paul Hayes Tucker, and others. However the Wildenstein Institute refused to accept this, thereby choosing to ignore the latest research, and continued to regard the painting as a fake, a decision based predominantly on the connoisseurship of the late Daniel Wildenstein
Daniel Wildenstein
Daniel Leopold Wildenstein was a French art dealer and scholar, as well as a leading thoroughbred race horse owner and breeder....
.
Provenance
The stretcher has a label from the Paris art supplies dealer Latouche who is known to have had dealings with Monet and to have supplied canvases to a number of impressionist artists. The style of this label suggests the canvas was sold before 1884. On the back of the painting there is also a French railway sticker for transport from Paris to Argenteuil where Monet lived between 1871 and 1878. The back of the painting has a further sticker from a London gallery, Arthur Tooth and Sons, which handled a number of Monet paintings. The sticker has the sticker number 3322. Gallery records show that it was acquired from Mahmoud Kahlil. He was an Egyptian art collector whose collection is now housed in the Mohamed Mahmoud Khalil MuseumMohamed Mahmoud Khalil Museum
The Mohamed Mahmoud Khalil Museum is a museum in Greater Cairo, in the Giza area, Egypt. It is located in a palace built in the early 20th century.-History:...
in Cairo. The museum records show a photograph of the painting which had been acquired by Khalil from the Paris dealer Georges Petit
Georges Petit
Georges Petit was a French art dealer, a key figure in the Paris art world and an important promoter and cultivator of Impressionist artists.-Early career:...
. There is another sticker on the painting with the number 5575. Stylistically, this label matches others which are known to be from the George Petit gallery and the number implies that it was in Petit's gallery before May 1920 and thus before Monet's death in 1926.
The evidence suggests the following provenance:
Exhibited
Similar works
Monet painted a number of scenes in the Argenteuil area. An acknowledged work with the same title was painted by Monet in 1872. This work was sold at a Sotheby'sSotheby's
Sotheby's is the world's fourth oldest auction house in continuous operation.-History:The oldest auction house in operation is the Stockholms Auktionsverk founded in 1674, the second oldest is Göteborgs Auktionsverk founded in 1681 and third oldest being founded in 1731, all Swedish...
auction in New York for $4.8 million in 2005.