The computer says no: Economist

Image processing could help to identify artists by their brushstrokes

THE ability of computers to analyse complex digital images is growing rapidly. Robots are being fitted with powerful vision systems that allow them to recognise and hold things. Satellite images of the Earth can be scanned for tiny features, or pictures from deep space searched for strange objects. Medical images can be analysed to find out what might be going on inside a human body. Now digital imaging is learning how to spot art forgeries too.

Scientific methods have long been used to help authenticate works of art: for instance, paint can be dated from its chemical composition or canvasses X-rayed to reveal what lies below the surface. In recent years, however, the art itself has come under more scientific scrutiny, especially through the analysis of brushstrokes. The idea is to establish the equivalent of an artist’s “handwriting” to help experts attribute paintings.

One of the most comprehensive studies using such methods was published recently in Signal Processing Magazine from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. It involved analysing the paintings of Vincent van Gogh and was carried out by James Wang of Penn State University and his colleagues from other universities. It was done with the help of the Van Gogh and Kröller-Müller museums in the Netherlands.

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