Attribution note

A short, single-thread argument for or against one painting's attribution, built from materials and/or brushwork evidence alone.

Due: 26 March 2027 · Weight: 25%

The brief#

In 800–1200 words, argue a specific attribution claim about one named, disputed painting, using only the evidence this course has taught by week 5: materials and brushwork.

Pick a painting from the seminar packets (weeks 2–4) or one of your own finding, provided its attribution is genuinely contested in the literature and not merely obscure. State your claim plainly in the first paragraph — “this painting is/is not by Tang Yin, on the following grounds” — rather than building to a reveal. The room for judgement is in how you weigh materials against brushwork when they don’t perfectly agree, which they usually don’t; the mechanics are in naming your evidence precisely enough that another student could check your reasoning against the same reproduction.

What you submit#

A single markdown or PDF file, 800–1200 words, uploaded through the course system. Cite every reproduction and source you used, including any AI or outside research assistance, in a short footnote — see the policies page for what that footnote needs to cover.

The marking table above weights evidence quality highest: a note that handles two kinds of evidence carefully outscores one that gestures at four kinds without checking any of them against the seminar’s shared vocabulary.