Public lecture: Watermarks & Computational Art History
On Friday 16 May, the RKD – Netherlands Institute for Art History, in collaboration with Teylers Museum, will organise a public lecture on watermark analysis using digital tools. Speakers are Prof. Rick Johnson and Dr. Rob Fucci. The afternoon event will take place at Teylers Museum, is free of charge and can also be followed online.
Watermark research
Watermarks are an important tool in the investigation of the origin, production and dating of works of art on paper. During this public lecture, Rick Johnson, pioneer in computational art history and professor emeritus at Cornell University, will discuss how digital techniques can help in dating 17th-century Dutch drawings. Rob Fucci, a specialist in early modern Dutch drawings and prints and affiliated with the University of Amsterdam, will speak about the importance of watermark research.
Project Watermarks
This public lecture on watermark analysis is part of the Watermarks research project, with which Rick Johnson and Rob Fucci are closely affiliated as researchers. In this project, led by the RKD, work is being done on improving watermark identification and comparison with innovative digital tools and image processing techniques. The research is being carried out in collaboration with various partners, including Teylers Museum. The public lecture is part of the four-day short course Watermarks & Computational Art History that will be given at the RKD in May.
Programme
14:15 Doors open
14:30 Welcome by Marc de Beyer
14:40 Short introduction by Yvonne Bleyerveld
14:45 Lecture: Assisting dating of 17th-century Dutch drawings using watermark matches by Rick Johnson
15:30 Lecture: Watermark matches in Rembrandt’s drawings: a preliminary report by Rob Fucci
16:10 Q&A with Rick Johnson and Rob Fucci led by Yvonne Bleyerveld
16:30 Drinks until 17:30 at the latest
About the speakers
Prof. Rick Johnson is Geoffrey S.M. Hedrick Senior Professor of Engineering Emeritus at Cornell University. In recent years he has specialised in computational art history, applying digital signal processing techniques to art historical research. His work focuses on finding and analysing patterns in canvases and historical paper.
Dr. Robert L. Fucci is affiliated with the University of Amsterdam and specialises in Dutch drawing and print art from the early modern period. His research focuses on dating techniques, the role of watermarks and the market for art on paper in the 17th and 18th centuries.