Fake or Fortune? painting bought for £2k at auction worth £300k

A painting bought for just over £2,000 has been authenticated as a long-lost masterpiece worth £300,000.

The buyer, Lincoln artist David Taylor, said he had been “bowled over” by the artwork while browsing a sale at a regional auction house.

Experts on the BBC’s Fake of Fortune? were able to prove the painting, known as The Bean Harvest and depicting a scene of women in a field, was a piece from the early 20th Century by Canadian impressionist Helen McNicoll.

After discovering its potential new value, Mr Taylor said he had “believed in the painting from day one”.

He added it looked like it had been painted by “someone who really knows what they’re doing”.

Mr Taylor discovered McNicoll’s signature after taking the painting out of its frame.

McNicoll is one of Canada’s most celebrated female artists, achieving considerable international success during her career.

Deaf from the age of two, McNicoll was known for her impressionist representations of rural landscapes.

In 1915, her career was cut short when she developed complications from diabetes and died at the age of 35.

It was revealed on Thursday’s episode of Fake or Fortune? that the artwork had been exhibited in Canada five times between 1912 and 1913, but its whereabouts had since been unknown.

During the episode, the show’s team – including presenters Fiona Bruce and Philip Mould – helped Mr Taylor to prove its authenticity.

“I’d not heard of Helen McNicoll before we started investigating this painting,” Bruce said.

“But what a pioneer she was – a woman at that time, the early 20th Century, travelling abroad with her easel while profoundly deaf.

“I’m so glad we’ve been able to bring her name to wider attention.”

Bruce read out an expert assessment which said there was enough evidence to support the conclusion that the painting was a lost work by McNicoll.

Co-host Mould described the find as a “once-in-a-lifetime discovery”, adding there was a massive desire on both sides of the Atlantic for the work of high-quality women artists.

Canadian philanthropist Pierre Lassonde, a major collector of McNicoll’s work, flew over to London to see the painting in person.

During the show, he said: “For a painting that has been missing for 110 years, I think it’s fantastic… I wouldn’t mind adding one more piece to my collection.”

Mr Taylor described the experience as “an absolute adventure”.

“The [Fake or Fortune?] team and the BBC have made the journey memorable and exciting,” he said.

“I believed in the painting from day one, and I’m hopeful that it could achieve a record price,” he added.

The painting is currently being stored in a gallery and Mr Taylor plans to sell it at auction in the near future.

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