Past Event

November 28, 2007

Are They Pollocks? What Science Tells Us About the Matter Paintings

In 2002, a group of paintings was found in a storage unit belonging to the late Herbert Matter, a friend of Jackson Pollock. The discovery -- front-page news -- spurred new research on the relationship between Matter and Pollock and has generated considerable controversy about the attribution of the paintings, initially said to be by Pollock. Speakers included two of the scientists who analyzed the paintings -- one speaking in public about his research for the very first time -- and Professor Pepe Karmel, co-curator of the 1998 Jackson Pollock retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art, who discussed the discovery in the broader context of art history and the connoisseurship of Pollock's paintings and drawings.

Pepe Karmel, Chair and Associate Professor, Dept. of Art History, New York University

James Martin, Research Scientist and Principal, Orion Analytical, LLC

Richard Newman, Head of Scientific Research, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston