Michel-Ange authentique
Jean-René Gaborit, former head of Sculptures at the Louvre, has published a major new book, "Les Sculptures de Michel-Ange. Le vrai, l'incertain et le faux," which rigorously examines the authenticity of works attributed to Michelangelo. The 500-page volume, based on fifty years of study, categorizes the master's sculptural corpus into works of certain authenticity, lost-and-found pieces that spark debate, sculptures executed by others after his designs, and works mistakenly attributed due to stylistic similarities.
This publication matters because it confronts a significant paradox in art history: despite Michelangelo's towering reputation, the authenticity of many sculptures traditionally ascribed to him remains contested. Gaborit's systematic 'winnowing' provides a crucial scholarly framework that clarifies the artist's true legacy, separates his hand from that of followers and copyists, and offers a definitive resource for curators, scholars, and the art market navigating the complex terrain of Renaissance attribution.