MovieChat Forums > Incognito (1998) Discussion > The Rembrandt Code

The Rembrandt Code

posted 18 years ago by cjshanno
8 replies | jump to latest

Mathematician Dan Rockmore has created a computer program to analyse a digital image of a painting and determine if it is a forgery:
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"The fact that you can put everything on the computer means that everything is numbers," Rockmore says. "As soon as everything is numbers, it makes perfect sense to ask mathematical questions about what the numbers represent." If he's right - if computers can distinguish between artists more accurately than connoisseurs can - the art world is in for some high-stakes corrections. Rockmore's scientific approach will boost the value of some collections by millions of dollars - while devastating others that are tainted by imitations and fakes.
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But I suppose this wouldn't be much of a movie if the love interest was a computer program.

[–] JJ-N 18 years ago

Well, I won't get into any details here, but that sounds like a typical mathematician talking. That computer program is probably fine for entertainment purposes, but only as long as you don't take it too seriously.

[–] vze3gqhh 18 years ago

I would think that it could be used as a first level filter.

Also, although a painting is essentially 2D it really is 3D, so unless the data represented is 3D it's limited in that way also.

IMHO...

[–] schoduck 18 years ago

I agree that a painting truly is three dimensional. That said, the only true computer analysis would involve computed tomography which views and analyses all 3 Cartesian coordinates to provide the proper data for quantitaive analysis.

You know, sometimes scientific methods take all the fun out of life. :-)

[–] richvirgo 18 years ago

I recently read an article somewhere on the latest x-ray analysis of Leonardo's "Mona Lisa".The research done and the discoveries made are truly fascinating.Not to be a spoiler,Google or reference in NYT or art magazines the research .You will not be disappointed.As far as I can remember,there were no mathematical methods involved.

[–] Dr_Sagan 17 years ago

There is an easy way to check if a painting is genuine. You burn it. If the flame is green is geniune, if the flame is red it a forgery.
If you don't believe me burn for example mona lisa. You will see a green flame. If it red don't be sorry it was fake!

[–] The_Dying_Flutchman 15 years ago

Much the same was said of Ray Fladeboe's masterwork "Yo Lips" now hanging in Nancy Reagan'a bedroom.

What is the sound an imploding pimp makes?

[–] 15 years ago

[deleted]

[–] englisher101 14 years ago

[...] the art world is in for some high-stakes corrections.

This would only be the case if he had the original to start with, for which we depend on connoisseurs to determine for all past works of art. The computer program, at best, will only be able to tell you if two paintings are identical, and even that is rather involved from an algorithmic standpoint and subject to a lot of noise. It would not be able to tell what's real and fake, only what matches at best so you'd have to make certain you have the original for a start, otherwise this program will just authenticate a fake.