Peter Doig authentication trial concludes without verdict in disputed painting case

Judge Feinerman has delayed a verdict in the authentication trial involving Scottish artist Peter Doig, who denies creating a painting owned by former corrections officer Robert Fletcher. The trial concluded this week after beginning earlier in August 2016. Fletcher and art dealer Peter Barlow filed a lawsuit in 2013 after Doig refused to authenticate the work. Fletcher claims he purchased the painting from a teenage Doig for $100 in 1977 while both were at Thunder Bay Correctional Center in northwest Ontario, Canada. Doig maintains he never served time there and has provided alibis for his whereabouts. The painting bears the signature 'Pete Doige'—a name Doig says he never used. Another man named Pete Doige, now deceased, was incarcerated at the facility during that period. Plaintiffs' appraiser values the work at $6-8 million if authenticated as a Doig, or $100,000 if not. The case raises questions about artists' control over their name and right to disown artwork. A decision is expected in coming weeks.