Norval Morrisseau, a revered Indigenous artist, is on the frontlines in the battle against art fraud. His devoted estate team partners with smart technology to power this crucial battle. Morrisseau’s legacy continues today even though he passed away in 2007. He is celebrated for his unique pictographic style and his self-taught, trailblazing role in the art world. He was the first Aboriginal artist to have a contemporary exhibition at a major Canadian gallery. Finally, he was an incredibly proud member of the Indian Group of Seven. Today, his paintings command millions in the market, but a significant challenge looms: the proliferation of counterfeit artworks.
Cory Dingle, who administers Morrisseau’s estate, has acted aggressively to stop this from happening. Three years ago, though, he joined forces with two kindred-spirit, art-loving professors to create new, proprietary software called “Norval AI.” This sophisticated program is able to examine the works of art and determine the authenticity. It’s completely changing the way that art fraud is detected. Since launching, Norval AI has identified at least 6,000 fraudulent paintings posed as Morrisseau originals. This detection has sparked losses in excess of $100 million to his estate.
The Legacy of Norval Morrisseau
Norval Morrisseau is renowned for his bold colors and shamanistic subject matter that speaks to his Indigenous roots. The former Navy photographer and self-taught artist shattered ceilings and inspired a generation of Black creatives. For that reason and more, his works are culturally important. They’re historically significant too, embodying the convergence of Indigenous culture and modern artistry.
Morrisseau’s influence is still very much alive today, even posthumously. Two schools have been established in his name, educating students from both remote Indigenous communities and the University of Winnipeg. To this day, these schools focus strongly on healing and education, which continues to build Morrisseau’s long-term legacy.
“There are two schools named after Norval. There are healing institutions. There are academic institutions. There are remote Indigenous communities,” – Cory Dingle
While Morrisseau may have left the world in 2007, his art is still capturing the hearts and minds of collectors today. His paintings have subsequently become prized commodities in the art market, regularly selling for tens of millions at auction. This high demand has regrettably resulted in a rise of counterfeit artworks pretending to be originals by Morrisseau.
The Role of Technology in Art Authentication
Dingle collaborated with the professors to develop Norval AI. This crowdfunded tool, a portable X-ray fluorescence scanner, is intended to address the increasingly rampant crime of art forgery. The software uses state-of-the-art algorithms to analyze various features of Morrisseau’s paintings. It’s able to detect patterns and anomalies that the deepest experienced human eyes can’t discern.
Patricia Nielsen, one of the professors involved in developing Norval AI, explains its functionality:
“It can detect those patterns and the anomalies that might be invisible to the human eye… so art experts, historians can dig in further.”
Similar to a virtual magnifying glass, Norval AI brings new laser-like focus to most aspects of preservation practice. It’s developed an incredible reputation for getting fakes right and assisting experts with their determination.
Along with software breakthroughs, robotics themselves have contributed to maintaining Morrisseau’s legacy. A robotic painter called “Dodo” has been trained to replicate Morrisseau’s signature style. Today, Dodo’s recreations are about 69 percent accurate. Implementing this technology has technological limitations. Nonetheless, there are promising developments.
“If you look at one of our works randomly on the street, you wouldn’t be able to say that’s made by a robot,” – Ryan
Ryan acknowledges that the robot cannot replicate every technique used by artists:
“We can’t use every tool in an artist’s arsenal yet. If an artist is out here finger painting, obviously we can’t do stuff like that.”
Challenges Ahead
Norval AI and Dodo’s inspiring capabilities are just the beginning, with challenges ahead in the continuing battle against art fraud. Technology presents exciting and powerful new tools for authentication, but they present exciting new opportunities for abuse. Dingle notes that it is necessary to consult with communities impacted by art forgery before implementing these technologies on a broader scale.
“The worst thing that could happen is that we release this without consultation with groups that have been harmed by art forgery and this technology is used against artists,” – Ryan
Cory Dingle reflects on the ongoing battle against counterfeit artworks by acknowledging the improvements made with Norval AI:
“Because the fakes were so terrible… we got to a point with our AI that it was so good at picking them out.”
So, as technology advances, so do the tactics used by bad actors. Dingle admits that he has been cautious about pushing for complete accuracy:
“I have kind of been holding back on getting to 100 percent.”
