In 2009 conservators at the National Gallery of Art in Washington made an interesting discovery while restoring one of Manet’s paintings, “The Old Musician.” The conservation took around two years as the painting had a thick coating of varnish, which had significantly yellowed. The varnish had changed the appearance of many of the colors, for instance, making blues look green. In addition to revealing the painting’s true colors, conservators also found that Manet had originally considered a completely different composition, more related to “The Absinthe Drinker.” This conservation discovery proves that removing an old layer of varnish can make a tremendous difference in the overall appearance of an artwork and often reveals previously unnoticed details.

Find out now if you have an authentic Édouard Manet painting or drawing: