Himalayan Art Resources

Subject: Suspect Art Page

Confusions & Controversies | Pilgrimage Art Main Page

Subjects, Topics & Types:
- Name Inscription: Misidentified or Added
- Cityscapes & Holy Mountains Pilgrimage Art
- Depictions of the Lhasa Jowo
- Pilgrimage Paintings (Newar Pilgrims)
- Temple Shop Art (Field Museum)
- Decorative Art: Over Restoration
- Fake Art (Forgery)
- Confusions
- Controversies
- Others...

Video: Suspect Art

The works below are suspect. Are they new or old? Were they created with the intention to deceive or are they just copy art? (See Fake Art, Forgery).

It can be very difficult at first glance to discern Pilgrimage Art from Temple Shop Art and the unenviable questionable Suspect Art. Temple Shop art is for the most part simply a 'bad' poorly created commodity to sell in the bustling market places in front of temples. The religious iconography might be correct or it might be very wrong.

Labeling something as suspect art generally means it has been ruled out as Temple Shop Art. It is then more likely to be an outright fake with the seller, or creator, having the intention to misrepresent or deceive.

Jeff Watt 7-2014 [updated 8-2017]

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Many old paintings are heavily restored to the extent that they are no longer representative of the original painting style and that includes palette, iconography, line-work, and so much more. An essential read is, Thangka Restoration and Conservation, by Marion Boyer & Jean Michel Terrier. A perfect example of this type is this portrait of Urgyan Gonpo (Prajnasti Bhadra), 2nd abbot of Riwoche Monastery

Laura A. Weinstein, 3-2024