Anna Tummers

Anna Tummers
Born1974 (age 51–52)
Alma materUniversity of Amsterdam
Occupationsprofessor, researcher, curator, art historian

Anna Tummers is a Dutch art historian, curator, and researcher, known for her work on Dutch Golden Age painting and Flemish painting,[1] particularly those of the seventeenth century.[2] She is a professor in Early Modern Art at Ghent University.[3][4]

Biography

Anna Tummers began her career as a research assistant at the Print Room, Windsor in Windsor Castle, England (1999–2000). She then served as an assistant curator at the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. (2000–2003). From 2003 to 2008, she was a lecturer and research associate at the University of Amsterdam.[5][6]

Tummers has stated that her time in Windsor and Washington led her to take research notes on seventeenth-century Dutch art theory, which later developed into the subject of her dissertation.[7]

On 1 November 2008, Tummers became the curator of old masters at the Frans Hals Museum in Haarlem, succeeding Pieter Biesboer.[8] She held this position until 2021, when she left museum work to focus on academic research.[9]

One of her early exhibitions at the Frans Hals Museum was ‘Judith Leyster: The First Woman to Become a Master Painter’, which ran from 12 December 2009 to 9 May 2010. The exhibition had previously been shown at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., where it was curated by Arthur K. Wheelock Jr. and was on view from 21 June to 29 November 2009.[10][11]

Academic research

Tummers is noted for her work in developing new methodologies in art authentication,[12] combining traditional connoisseurship with modern scientific techniques.[13]

Her research often focuses on the ethical dimensions of art authentication, examining the profound impact that expert opinions can have on the cultural and economic value of artworks. Because of this, she has received significant grants, including a European Research Council grant to explore new methods of identifying art forgeries.[14]

Tummers's work in art historical research has been described by Myrthe Timmers as being different, "from traditional expertise by using the newest technical analysis methods and computer science."[15]

Publications

  • The Eye of the Connoisseur: Authenticating Paintings by Rembrandt and His Contemporaries (2011)
  • Frans Hals: Eye to Eye with Rembrandt, Rubens, and Titian (2013)[16]
  • The Art of Laughter: Humour in the Dutch Golden Age (2018)[17]
  • (ed., with Koenraad Jonckheere) Art Market and Connoisseurship (2008)[18]
  • First Woman to Become a Master Painter (2008)[19]
  • Frans Hals or not Frans Hals: Connoisseurship, Technical Analyses and Digital Tools (2025)[20]

Selected articles

  • "Supplementing the Eye: The Technical Analysis of Frans Hals's Paintings – I", in: Burlington Magazine 161 (2019), pp. 934–941.[21]
  • 'The New York Malle Babbe: Original, Studio Work, or Forgery?” In Frans Hals: Iconography – Technique – Reputation, edited by Norbert E. Middelkoop and Rudi E.O. Ekkart, 130–54. Amsterdam University Press, 2024. doi:10.2307/jj.22135982.12.
  • ‘By his hand: the paradox of seventeenth-century connoisseurship’, pp. 30–66, in Anna Tummers and Koenraad Jonckheere (eds.), Art market and Connoisseurship, a Closer Look at Paintings by Rembrandt, Rubens and their Contemporaries, Amsterdam 2008, ISBN 978-9-0896-4032-1.
  • ‘The painter versus the connoisseur? The best judge of pictures in seventeenth-century theory and practice’, pp. 126–147, in Anna Tummers and Koenraad Jonckheere (eds.), Art market and Connoisseurship, a Closer Look at Paintings by Rembrandt, Rubens and their Contemporaries, Amsterdam 2008, ISBN 978-9-0896-4032-1.

Research and grants

Tummers heads and co-heads several research projects funded by the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research. Her European Research Council-funded project has been particularly influential, advancing the field of forgery detection while shedding light on the historical art market and the evolution of artistic techniques, alongside others:

  • Frans Hals/Not Frans Hals: A project investigating the criteria for attributing paintings to Frans Hals and exploring new methods in art authentication.[22]
  • 21st Century Connoisseurship: A collaboration with Professor Robert Erdmann, focusing on developing advanced technical and digital tools for analyzing seventeenth-century paintings.[23]
  • ArtDetect: A project aimed at developing new ways to detect forgeries, supported by the Centre for Global Heritage and Development and the Scientific Advisory Board of IPERION HS.[24]

Exhibitions

Tummers has curated and contributed to several exhibitions at the Frans Hals Museum, including:

  • Celebrating in the Golden Age
  • The Art of Laughter: Humour in the Dutch Golden Age[25]
  • Frans Hals: Eye to Eye with Rembrandt, Rubens, and Titian (2013), celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Frans Hals Museum.[26]

References

  1. ^ "Haarlemse Malle Babbe: hoe een vrouw drie gezichten kreeg in kunstgeschiedenis en vervalsingen". Haarlems Dagblad. 13 December 2025. Retrieved 24 February 2026.
  2. ^ Fabrikant, Geraldine (November 22, 2011). "In Haarlem, Treasures of the Dutch Golden Age". The New York Times.
  3. ^ "Anna Tummers". Ghent University Research Portal. Retrieved 2024-07-28.
  4. ^ Aneca, Lotte (March 20, 2025). "UGent ontwikkelt methode om kunstvervalsing op te sporen: ‘Ieder museum heeft een paar vervalsingen, zonder dat ze het weten’." VRT NWS. vrt.be
  5. ^ "Anna Tummers". CODART. Retrieved 2024-07-27.
  6. ^ Tummers, Anna (2005). "Aelbert Cuyp's Innovative Use of Spatial Devices". In van den Doel, Marieke; van Eck, Natasja; Korevaar, Gerbrand; Tummers, Anna; Weststeijn, Thijs (eds.). The Learned Eye: Regarding Art, Theory, and the Artist's Reputation. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press. pp. 86–98. ISBN 9789053567128.
  7. ^ Tummers, Anna (2011). The Eye of the Connoisseur: Authenticating Paintings by Rembrandt and His Contemporaries. Los Angeles: Getty Publications. ISBN 9781606060841.
  8. ^ "Anna Tummers to Succeed Pieter Biesboer as Curator of Old Masters at the Frans Hals Museum, Haarlem". CODART. 3 July 2008. Retrieved 2024-07-27.
  9. ^ "Ann Demeester leaving the Frans Hals Museum in Haarlem". Frans Hals Museum. Retrieved 2024-07-28.
  10. ^ "Curator in the Spotlight: Anna Tummers". CODART. CODART, Dutch and Flemish art in museums worldwide. December 2008. Retrieved 2026-03-09.
  11. ^ "Exhibition: Judith Leyster, 1609-1660". National Gallery of Art. National Gallery of Art. 2009. Retrieved 2026-03-09. June 21 - November 29, 2009. West Building, Main Floor, Dutch Cabinet Galleries.
  12. ^ van Dijk, Harmen (July 3, 2025). "Hoe herken je een echte Frans Hals? ‘Het kennersoog blijft ondanks alle technieken belangrijk’". Trouw. trouw.nl
  13. ^ Reyburn, Scott (February 23, 2024). "What's in a Name? For This Rembrandt, a Steep and Rapid Rise in Price". The New York Times.
  14. ^ "Is it a fake or not? Time for a new kind of connoisseurship". Universiteit Leiden. 30 June 2023. Retrieved 2024-07-27.
  15. ^ Timmers, Myrthe (30 June 2023). "Is it a fake or not? Time for a new kind of connoisseurship". Leiden University. Retrieved 26 September 2024.
  16. ^ Tummers, Anna; Atkins, Chris (2013). Frans Hals: Eye to Eye with Rembrandt, Rubens, and Titian. Haarlem: Frans Hals Museum. ISBN 9789462080539.
  17. ^ Tummers, Anna (2018). The Art of Laughter: Humour in the Dutch Golden Age. Haarlem: Frans Hals Museum. ISBN 9789462621701.
  18. ^ Tummers, Anna; Jonckheere, Koenraad (2008). Art Market and Connoisseurship. A Closer Look at Paintings by Rembrandt, Rubens and Their Contemporaries. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press. ISBN 9789089640321.
  19. ^ Tummers, Anna (2008). First Woman to Become a Master Painter. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press. ISBN 9789089640314.
  20. ^ Tummers, Anna; Erdmann, Robert (2025). Frans Hals or not Frans Hals. Connoisseurship, Technical Analyses and Digital Tools. Open Access. ISBN 9783031594885.
  21. ^ Tummers, Anna (2019). "Supplementing the Eye: The Technical Analysis of Frans Hals's Paintings – I". Burlington Magazine. 161. et al.: 934–941.
  22. ^ "Frans Hals/Not Frans Hals". NWO. Retrieved 2024-07-27.
  23. ^ "21st Century Connoisseurship". NWO. Retrieved 2024-07-27.
  24. ^ "ArtDetect: A New Connoisseurship - Smart Ways to Detect Forgeries". Ghent University Research. Retrieved 2024-07-27.
  25. ^ Siegal, Nina (October 21, 2017). "Need a Good Laugh? Check Out Some 17th-Century Dutch Art". The New York Times.
  26. ^ "Frans Hals: Eye to Eye with Rembrandt, Rubens, and Titian". Frans Hals Museum. 29 November 2012. Retrieved 2024-07-27.
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