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Art & Art History vocabulary · Describing & Interpreting Art

Attribute

Meaning in art & art history, with examples

/əˈtrɪbjuːt/verbCommon term

In art & art history, attribute means: To say that a work was made by a particular artist, place or period, based on evidence such as style, documents or scientific tests.

In Turkish: atfetmek, (bir sanatçıya) ait saymak

How it is used

Very common on museum labels. ‘Attributed to Titian’ means experts think the work is probably by Titian but are not certain; ‘workshop of’ and ‘circle of’ are less certain. The noun is attribution, and attributions can be accepted, disputed or changed.

Example sentences

  1. The painting was once attributed to Rembrandt but is now thought to be by one of his pupils.

  2. On what evidence did they attribute the drawing to Leonardo?

Common collocations

  • attributed to
  • attribute a work to
  • firmly attributed
  • change the attribution
  • provenanceThe documented history of who has owned an artwork since it was made, used to show that it is genuine and was acquired legally.
  • styleThe particular way an artwork looks that links it to an artist, a group, a place or a period, shown in its forms, colours, technique and subjects.
  • oeuvreThe complete body of work an artist produced during their life, considered as a whole.
  • forgeryA work made to look like the genuine work of another artist or period in order to deceive buyers; also the crime of making such works.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Describing & Interpreting Art

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