Authenticating the paintings of Henri Matisse can only be done with certainty from research.
Henri Matisse spent his entire life in France and this facilitates researching his works. Early on, many of his works were acquired by American collectors and for this reason there is also quite a bit including vintage photographs and other material in American archives.
We generally begin a Matisse authentication by performing some research in Paris where we have two highly educated resident art historians and researchers.
If the work seems to come from early American collectors, we look in the libraries in Baltimore and New York in particular.
A full Matisse authentication will generally take thirty to forty-five days.
If you have a potential Matisse, send us some photos, we would like to see it.