Is It? The Art Mystery Podcast

This episode of Is It? the art mystery podcasts looks at a small painting at the Philadelphia Museum of Art which is largely attributed to Jan van Eyck: "Saint Francis Receiving the Stigmata." But is it actually by van Eyck? To discuss this and the results of the cutting-edge AI image analysis by Art Recognition, I'll speak with Till-Holger Borchert, director of the Suermondt-Ludwig-Museum in Aachen, and an authority on van Eyck. To see the painting in question, displayed at the Philadelphia Museum of Art click here.To see the other version of the painting, displayed at the Sabauda Gallery in Turin, click here.To learn more about Till-Holger Borchert, click here.To learn more about Art Recognition, click here.

This episode is about the Guidelines on the Ethical Use of AI for Image Analysis in Art Authentication. AI is everywhere, but that means that the term is being used with sometimes reckless abandon. For any serious field—like art attribution—it’s important to lay out recommendations for how best, most transparently, and most effectively to use AI. These guidelines were developed jointly by Art Recognition and the Center for Art Law (with a little help from me), and they offer a framework for how artificial intelligence can be used responsibly, transparently, and collaboratively in the authentication of artworks. To discuss the guidelines, I’ve invited Carina Popovici, co-founder of Art Recognition and a past guest on this podcast, and Irina Tarsis, the founder of the Center for Art Law. The three of us were the main drivers of these guidelines, with significant feedback and input from a variety of others, many lawyers working with the Center for Art Law. See the Guidelines themselves by visiting https://art-recognition.com/ or https://itsartlaw.org/ or direct download here.

Today’s mystery centers on a painter of light and silence—Georges de La Tour. His candlelit saints and beggars are hauntingly still, so perfect in their quiet intensity that they almost seem modern. But as with many great artists, the line between what’s real, what’s a copy, and what’s an outright forgery can get blurry. To help us untangle this mystery, I’m joined once again by Carina Popovici, co-founder and CEO of Art Recognition, the Swiss company using artificial intelligence to authenticate artworks. And with us for the first time, my own former professor at Colby College, art historian Veronique Plesch. Together, we’re going to test a painting that just might be by one of France’s most enigmatic masters. 

Today’s featured picture is called Portrait of a Man. It certainly looks like a Velazquez. But you know what question I’m going to ask. Is it? To answer this question, I've invited two guests. First, Batu Arda Düzgün, originally from Turkey, is a researcher at Art Recognition, a company that uses artificial intelligence to help authenticate artworks. With a background that spans both computer science and art history, Arda is at the forefront of applying cutting-edge machine learning to some of the oldest and most mysterious paintings in the world. Joining him is British art historian Matthew Wilson, an expert on visual symbolism and the author of several widely-read books, including Symbols in Art, The Hidden Language of Symbols, and Art Unpacked, all published by Thames & Hudson. Matthew’s work uncovers the layers of meaning behind what we see, offering insight into the codes, allegories, and visual metaphors that artists have used across centuries. Arda’s work likewise uncovers layers of meaning but in the form of complex image analysis and the use of AI. What do they have to say about the artwork featured in today’s episode? Listen to find out.

**Featured in The Guardian**Caravaggio lived a violent fist of a life, but man could he paint. He is one of a handful of true revolutionaries, creating a style that was unlike anything that had come before, and was hugely influential. But he only made some 60 paintings, depending on which scholar you ask, so each is incredibly valuable. And not one has come up for auction in the last century or so. Today’s episode reveals some big surprises regarding three known versions of a painting called The Lute Player. But are all three by Caravaggio? Let’s find out in this special episode where I’m joined by British gallerist Clovis Whitfield and Art Recognition co-founder, Carina Popovici.This episode was featured in The Guardian newspaper on 27 September 2025To learn more about Clovis Whitfield, visit: http://www.whitfieldfineart.com/