An art enthusiast and blogger may have struck gold after purchasing what he believed was a minor artwork for just $45, only to discover it could be a masterpiece worth up to $65,000. Robjn Cantus, who lives near Cambridge, England, bought the painting in 2019 when Hertfordshire County Council decided to sell off its mid-20th century art collection. His remarkable journey of discovery will be featured on BBC One's popular art authentication show "Fake or Fortune" this Monday evening.
The painting was originally listed as being created by Vera Cunningham and was part of a two-piece lot that Cantus purchased for the modest sum of $45. "I bought it because it was the right price - $45 isn't a lot," Cantus explained. However, he now believes the artwork is actually by Frances Hodgkins, a renowned New Zealand artist who lived from 1869 to 1947.
Cantus admitted he didn't initially want the particular painting in question but was interested in acquiring works attributed to Vera Cunningham. "The painting came up for sale as some of the less important works from the Hertfordshire Council Pictures for Schools Scheme in 2019," he said. "I went on a bit of a shopping spree buying the works, as many were not expensive and there were many items in each lot."
The art blogger needed illustrations for a book he has since written about the Pictures for Schools program. This innovative 20th-century project was the brainchild of Nan Youngman, designed to purchase modern British art that could be loaned to schools and "give children artwork that was inspiring to look at." The program aimed to expose young students to quality contemporary art in their educational environment.
Hertfordshire County Council made more than $570,000 from its initial sale of the artworks. A council spokesperson explained that the sell-off followed a comprehensive review of its collection and a public consultation process. "We sold a number of works judged to have little or no significance to Hertfordshire at auction in 2019, with the money raised being invested in local services," they stated. "One of our aims in selling these works was to find them a better home than our storerooms where they could be properly displayed and appreciated, so while it may turn out that this specific painting was worth more, we are pleased that it has found a good home with a new owner."
The council emphasized that it "took professional advice on the value of each of these pieces" before proceeding with the sale, suggesting due diligence was performed in the evaluation process.
Frances Hodgkins was born in New Zealand but left her homeland in 1901, spending the remainder of her life in Europe. Her breakthrough in public recognition came in 1929 when her friend and fellow artist Cedric Morris suggested she should be selected for the prestigious Seven & Five Society, where she exhibited alongside renowned artists such as Barbara Hepworth, Ben Nicholson, and Henry Moore. By the 1940s, her work was receiving significant praise in the British press.
Today, Hodgkins remains relatively unknown outside her native New Zealand, where galleries have been "very active in buying and repatriating the works," according to Cantus. Her later artistic style featured "very loose paintings of items like rusty tractors or farmyards," he explained, describing the characteristic approach that made her work distinctive.
The mystery began to unravel in an unexpected way. "The Fake or Fortune picture had been put in a horrid 1970s frame, when the original frame was damaged," Cantus recalled. The original identification labels on the back of the painting were lost during this reframing process, and "then it is likely someone guessed it was a Vera Cunningham and wrote it on the back."
Cantus initially posted a photograph of the painting on his blog and thought nothing more of it until 2021, when someone contacted him to suggest it might actually be by Frances Hodgkins. Intrigued by this possibility, he decided to remove the painting from its frame for closer examination. To his amazement, he discovered another painting on the reverse side of the canvas, effectively doubling his potential find.
Having conducted as much independent research as possible, Cantus reached out to the BBC's "Fake or Fortune" program because "it gives members of the public the chance to get a painting validated." The show, presented by art expert Philip Mould and journalist Fiona Bruce, specializes in authenticating artworks and determining their true value and provenance.
Cantus described his experience filming with the show as surreal and enjoyable. "I enjoyed what happened off the camera as much as on," he said. "Then you have an out-of-body experience: 'Why am I up a hill, in Wales, with Fiona Bruce, looking at a Roman goldmine?'" He praised Bruce's professionalism, noting she "was always shockingly well prepared each day for the show."
The outcome of the extensive investigation conducted by the "Fake or Fortune" team is being kept strictly confidential until the program airs. The show's experts typically employ various scientific and historical research methods to determine authenticity, including examining paint composition, canvas materials, artistic techniques, and historical documentation.
Reflecting on his unexpected journey into the art authentication world, Cantus added with characteristic humor, "I stopped thinking of the painting when I cycled back from London with it in a Primark bag." This casual comment underscores how dramatically his perception of the artwork's importance has changed since that initial purchase.
The case highlights the ongoing challenges and opportunities in the art world, where valuable works can sometimes be misattributed or overlooked, leading to significant discoveries years later. It also demonstrates the importance of proper documentation and provenance records in maintaining accurate attribution of artworks.
Viewers will have to tune in to "Fake or Fortune" on BBC One at 9:00 PM GMT this Monday to discover whether Cantus's intuition about the painting's true authorship proves correct, and whether his $45 investment will indeed turn out to be a $65,000 windfall. The episode promises to reveal the results of the comprehensive investigation into both paintings found on the double-sided canvas.
