ABSTRACT
One of the greatest mysteries to those new to the art business is quite simply: how does the business agree to know what it knows? Especially in the most contentious sector of determining whether artworks are authentic or fake, the lack of any structure or standardized process for settling these disputes can seem perplexing to the outsider. In fact, the current system of establishing knowledge in art remains a hodge-podge of improvised arrangements for specific artists, but nothing exists in the form of an overarching authority. Although Interpol, the international police organization, did hold a landmark conference on art forgery in 2012, their role is limited to an advisory one, and domestic law enforcement must prosecute cases of fraud involving art. At the very heart of the problem lies the intersection of an academic discipline: art history with what are sometimes very, very large amounts of money. For this reason alone, the most contentious attribution disputes often end up being decided in court, usually a US federal court.
