Is It? is a brand new podcast on art history’s mysteries. In each episode, we ask the question of whether a certain painting is by a certain famous artist. These are puzzle paintings, works that have divided and confounded scholars, sometimes for centuries. To answer this question, we bring in a guest expert, a specialist in the artist in question. And we also bring in an expert in AI authentication from Art Recognition. While our guest expert is the star of the show, we’ve also conducted a cutting edge, brand new AI analysis of the painting in question—and we’ll reveal what it says in the final part of this episode. The podcast is hosted by award-winning presenter and best-selling art historian, Professor Noah Charney. We cover suspected works by Caravaggio, Rembrandt, Van Dyck, Van Eyck and many more. So subscribe and listen for free wherever you get podcasts to find out: Is it?
This series is sponsored by Art Recognition, a Zurich-based AI art analysis firm that tests the works featured in each episode. It is produced by Urska Charney.
The so-called Allendale Nativity, an Adoration of the Shepherds now at the National Gallery in Washington, D.C., is attributed to Giorgione. But some, including the most famous of all connoisseurs, Bernard Berenson, if it is in fact by Titian. For this episode we put this to the test and asked the best available AI image analysis team to examine the painting. To discuss the results, I'm joined by the wonderfully prolific Susie Hodge, art historian and author of more than 100 books and counting.
8 Jul 2026
Is It an Artemisia?
This episode tests the attribution of two paintings long thought to have been by the great Baroque master, Artemisia Gentileschi--Madonna and Child, and Saint Cecilia, both of which are part of the wonderful collection at Galleria Spada in Rome. Though both works have been part of the collection and attributed to Artemisia since the 17th century, forensic analysis raised some questions that, through our discussion, we can deem solved! To discuss these works, host Noah Charney is joined by Adriana Capriotti, director of Galleria Spada; Beatrice de Ruggieri, a technical art historian who worked on the paintings and through her lab, Emmebi Diagnostica Artistica; and Alessandra Conti, an art historian with Art Recognition. Tune in to find out how a museum director, an art historian, an AI specialist, and a conservator unpack a pair of paintings by one of the greatest artists of the Baroque.
10 Jun 2026
Is It a Basquiat? with Magnus Resch
In Orlando a museum exhibited what it was claimed were a lost cache of 25 Basquiat paintings. Then the FBI raided and seized them. In this episode, we used cutting edge AI technology to check those 25 paintings to see if any might actually be by Basquiat, or were all of them forgeries? Joining us is art market expert Magnus Resch and Art Recognition founder, Carina Popovici.
6 May 2026
Is It a Modigliani? with Georgina Adam
In the spring of 2026 a new Modigliani catalogue raisonne was published. It was the first catalogue raisonne to include a painting previous not attributed to the artist in question, now authenticated using AI. It is one of the countless examples of symbiosis, when the connoisseur and the AI image analysis agree. But the catalogue opens up other questions--some 15 works attributed to Modigliani in past catalogues were downgraded, no longer considered his work, while some 100 others were added, a huge number for an artist for whom a single work can command millions. To discuss this, I invited Carina Popovici, founder of Art Recognition, and Georgina Adam, an acclaimed British art journalist specializing in the art market.
31 Mar 2026
Is It a Bronzino? with Bruce Edelstein
This episode features a portrait of Eleonora de Toledo, the wife of Duke Cosimo de Medici and an impressive woman, indeed. But is this portrait of her by the Medici court painter Bronzino? Or by his pupil and devoted follower Alessandro Allori? To explore who made this painting, we spoke with Bruce Edelstein, a professor and researcher based in Florence who is part of the global network of NYU. He is also a Bronzino specialist and has written a book on Eleonora. We are also joined by Alessandra Conti from Art Recognition who explains the cutting edge AI image analysis and how to interpret the results. So...it is a Bronzino? Or an Allori? Tune in to find out!
28 Feb 2026
Can AI Solve an Art Theft? Interview with Steve Berry on the Ghent Altarpiece
In this special episode, we chat with Steve Berry. Steve is the mega bestselling author of thoughtful art and artefact treasure hunt thrillers. He has sold over 26 million books and counting, selling an average of a book every thirty seconds. His thrillers are deeply researched and include a note from the author section clarifying what has been changed to suit the plot, so that the reader will be clear on what is fact and where the fiction begins. Noah was Steve's expert consultant for the novel "The Omega Factor," which features Jan van Eyck's "Ghent Altarpiece." For this episode, Art Recognition tested the famous Judges panel from the altarpiece, which was stolen in 1934 and never recovered. Or was it? A conservator in the 1970s theorized that the replacement panel, painted by infamous restorer (and art forger) Jef van der Veken might actually be the stolen panel, painted over to surreptitiously return it to the cathedral of St Bavo from which it was stolen. Art Recognition's AI image analysis will determine whether this was the case, or if the missing panel is still out there. Along the way Steve and Noah chat about writing, research, van Eyck...and Noah introduces Steve to AI image analysis.
31 Jan 2026
Is It a Said? with Jehane Ragai
In this episode, we’re turning our attention to the work of Mahmoud Sa'id, one of the most important and influential figures in modern Egyptian art. Trained in Europe yet deeply rooted in Egyptian culture, Sa’id created a body of work that blends academic technique with a distinctly local vision. His paintings occupy a central place in the history of twentieth-century Egyptian modernism—and they also raise important questions about attribution, variation, and legacy.
To discuss a painting that she selected for AI image analysis, I’m joined by Jehane Ragai, emeritus professor of chemistry at the American University in Cairo. Professor Ragai is a pioneer in the scientific analysis of artworks, with decades of experience applying chemistry and materials science to questions of attribution, authenticity, and conservation. Her work has been especially influential in the study of modern Egyptian painting, where scientific evidence can play a crucial role in clarifying complex art-historical and market questions. She’s the author of two excellent books that are sitting on my shelf: "The Scientist and the Forger" and "Technical Art History."
I’m also joined by Batu Arda Düzgün, AI Developer at Art Recognition, where he works at the intersection of machine learning, visual analysis, and art authentication. Batu develops systems that analyze artistic patterns at a level of scale and precision impossible for the human eye alone, offering new tools for understanding authorship, consistency, and deviation within an artist’s oeuvre.
Let's ask the question: Is it a Sa'id?
31 Dec 2025
Is It a Van Eyck? with Till-Holger Borchert
This episode of Is It? the art mystery podcasts looks at a small painting at the Philadelphia Museum of Art which is largely attributed to Jan van Eyck: "Saint Francis Receiving the Stigmata." But is it actually by van Eyck? To discuss this and the results of the cutting-edge AI image analysis by Art Recognition, I'll speak with Till-Holger Borchert, director of the Suermondt-Ludwig-Museum in Aachen, and an authority on van Eyck.
30 Nov 2025
Is It Responsible? Guidelines for the Use of AI for Art Authentication
This episode is about the Guidelines on the Ethical Use of AI for Image Analysis in Art Authentication. AI is everywhere, but that means that the term is being used with sometimes reckless abandon. For any serious field—like art attribution—it’s important to lay out recommendations for how best, most transparently, and most effectively to use AI.
These guidelines were developed jointly by Art Recognition and the Center for Art Law (with a little help from me), and they offer a framework for how artificial intelligence can be used responsibly, transparently, and collaboratively in the authentication of artworks. To discuss the guidelines, I’ve invited Carina Popovici, co-founder of Art Recognition and a past guest on this podcast, and Irina Tarsis, the founder of the Center for Art Law. The three of us were the main drivers of these guidelines, with significant feedback and input from a variety of others, many lawyers working with the Center for Art Law.
31 Oct 2025
Is It a De La Tour? with Veronique Plesch
This month's mystery centers on a painter of light and silence—Georges de La Tour. His candlelit saints and beggars are hauntingly still, so perfect in their quiet intensity that they almost seem modern. But as with many great artists, the line between what’s real, what’s a copy, and what’s an outright forgery can get blurry. To help us untangle this mystery, I’m joined once again by Carina Popovici, co-founder and CEO of Art Recognition, the Swiss company using artificial intelligence to authenticate artworks. And with us for the first time, my own former professor at Colby College, art historian Veronique Plesch. Together, we’re going to test a painting that just might be by one of France’s most enigmatic masters.
30 Sept 2025
Is It a Velazquez? with Matthew Wilson
Today’s featured picture is called Portrait of a Man. It certainly looks like a Velazquez. But you know what question I’m going to ask. Is it?
To answer this question, I've invited two guests. First, Batu Arda Düzgün, originally from Turkey, is a researcher at Art Recognition, a company that uses artificial intelligence to help authenticate artworks. With a background that spans both computer science and art history, Arda is at the forefront of applying cutting-edge machine learning to some of the oldest and most mysterious paintings in the world.
Joining him is British art historian Matthew Wilson, an expert on visual symbolism and the author of several widely-read books, including Symbols in Art, The Hidden Language of Symbols, and Art Unpacked, all published by Thames & Hudson. Matthew’s work uncovers the layers of meaning behind what we see, offering insight into the codes, allegories, and visual metaphors that artists have used across centuries. Arda’s work likewise uncovers layers of meaning but in the form of complex image analysis and the use of AI. What do they have to say about the artwork featured in today’s episode? Listen to find out.
27 Sept 2025
Is It a Caravaggio? with Clovis Whiftield
**Featured in The Guardian**
Caravaggio lived a violent fist of a life, but man could he paint. He is one of a handful of true revolutionaries, creating a style that was unlike anything that had come before, and was hugely influential. But he only made some 60 paintings, depending on which scholar you ask, so each is incredibly valuable. And not one has come up for auction in the last century or so. Today’s episode reveals some big surprises regarding three known versions of a painting called The Lute Player. But are all three by Caravaggio? Let’s find out in this special episode where I’m joined by British gallerist Clovis Whitfield and Art Recognition co-founder, Carina Popovici.
26 Sept 2025
Interview with AI Expert Carina Popovici
Most episodes of this podcast will feature a special guest art expert who chooses a painting that they’d like to have analyzed—a painting with uncertain or debated authorship. We are joined by, an AI specialist who reveals the test results and we discuss them together. But here and there we’ll include an interview that is relevant to the topic of art authentication, art historical mysteries, and technologies like AI, but which steps outside of the usual format. This is one such episode. In it, I’ll be interviewing one of the founders of Art Recognition, the firm that sponsors this podcast and runs the AI image analysis tests—Carina Popovici.
24 Sept 2025
Is It a Rembrandt? with Blake Gopnik
This episode of Is It? dives deeply into one of art history's enduring mysteries: The Polish Rider. A star attraction at the Frick in New York, it has long confused scholars. Is it entirely by Rembrandt? Mostly? Is it derivative or even a forgery? The brilliant art historian and critic Blake Gopnik is my guest to dive into this fascinating topic and much more, including Blake's book, "The Maverick's Museum: Albert Barnes and His American Dream."
23 Sept 2025
Is It a Van Dyck? with Professor Nils Büttner
Is it a Van Dyck? That’s the question we seek to answer in this episode. The painting in question is one of several versions of a Portrait of Don Diego Messia Felipe de Guzman, some of which are by Anthony van Dyck. But is this one? To answer this question, my guests for this episode include Prof. Dr. Nils Büttner, a distinguished art historian specializing in the visual culture of Germany and the Netherlands from the 15th to the 17th centuries; and Alita de Feudis, an art historian affiliated with Art Recognition, a Swiss technology company specializing in AI-driven art authentication.
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
Apple Podcasts (US)
4.0 / 5
4 ratings
Contact Is It? The Art Mystery Podcast
Guest appearances
Books guests
Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.
Host of Is It? The Art Mystery Podcast?
Claim your podcast to manage its listing and keep your show details accurate.
Pod Engine is an independent podcast discovery and analytics service and is not affiliated with or endorsed by this podcast. Artwork and show content belong to their owners. Full legal notice.
Explore this show Podcast research with Pod Engine
