AI Analysis Suggests El Greco Painted Majority of 'The Baptism of Christ'

Artificial intelligence has challenged long-held beliefs about El Greco's painting 'The Baptism of Christ,' installed in 1624 at the Hospital Tavera church in Toledo. Researchers from Western Reserve University in Ohio published findings in Science Advances on April 17, using a machine-learning model called Patch to analyze the work at a microscopic level. The model, trained on 25 paintings by nine student artists, scanned high-resolution 3D images to compare texture patterns across the canvas. Contrary to scholarly assumptions that El Greco's son Jorge Manuel and workshop assistants contributed significantly, Patch indicated underlying connections suggesting El Greco painted most of it himself. The analysis also examined 'Christ on the Cross' (1600–10), confirming it as the work of a single artist. While a region at the bottom shows later hands, stylistic variations may stem from El Greco's experimentation, brush choices, or aging effects. Patch operates without external training data, offering potential to attribute Renaissance workshop contributions more accurately. Lead author Andrew Van Horn noted further work is needed to identify artistic practice regimes conclusively, which could track artists' development from apprenticeship to independent work.