The Art Forger

Light is one of the most consistent motifs in the novel; both in the literal paintings and as a metaphor for truth and perception. Claire studies how Degas captured light on skin and fabric, and she uses that same attention to detail in her forgery. She is also obsessed with light in her personal work, capturing how it reflects through windows. She uses old-fashioned oil techniques primarily for their ability to show light from within. Claire often notes the weather and how the light shines through her studio. The light at any given moment often mirrors Claire’s internal conflict; she seeks clarity and truth in her art, even as she participates in deceit.

Degas’s After the Bath, along with the two forgeries, functions as a central symbol of authenticity and obsession. At first, the painting represents both opportunity and temptation to Claire; it is a chance to prove her technical brilliance, but it also puts her in an ethically questionable position. Within the novel, the painting’s uncertain provenance embodies the instability of truth in the art world: Just because experts have “proven” a painting genuine does not mean it is. This raises the question of what it means for art to be genuine in the first place.