POLLOCK AUTHENTICATION METHODS
Testing Methods:
Scientific Tests
Special Photography
Provenance Research
Forensic Methods
Document Investigation
Chain of Ownership
The most common method consists in a series of comparative analyses. Another is provenance research and reconstruction of the chain of ownership. Sometimes a group of elements can be fused to show that beyond a reasonable doubt the work is by Pollock, this is the circumstantial evidence approach. With Pollock, documentary evidence is usually not available for newly discovered works because they have never been exhibited and were not handled by an art gallery. His signature and the handwriting frequently found in his paintings can be forensically checked to establish if they are his. If fingerprints or hair embedded in the paint were found they would open some additional avenues. These are some of the methods available. Testing materials is not useful for Pollock because the materials he used don’t identify him. They were and remain available today to everyone.