Irina Linnik

Irina Vladimirovna Linnik (Russian: Ирина Владимировна Линник; 1922 – 23 March 2009) was a prominent Russian art historian. Considered an icon in Dutch art history and a leading specialist in Western European painting, Linnik's work was mainly concerned with the identification and attribution of 17th-century paintings from the Low Countries, France and Italy. Over the course of her career she identified, attributed and re-attributed around 250 different paintings.

Early life Irina Vladimirovna Linnik was born in 1922. Linnik studied at the Leningrad University and graduated in 1946 with an education in medieval history. On this trip, she visited the former home of the artist Rembrandt (1606–1669), whose work she admired.

Linnik was a specialist in Dutch art history. Her main focus was attributing Western European paintings from the 17th century, particularly Dutch and Flemish and also some Italian and French. By her own count, Linnik attributed or re-attributed around 250 paintings. The paintings were painted by artists such as Gerard van Honthorst, Hendrick Goltzius, Frans Hals, Frans Snyders, Govert Flinck and Rembrandt.

In 1958, Linnik also received much attention for discovering that two paintings exhibited in Odessa, previously believed to have been painted by Russian artists, were actually two lost paintings by Frans Hals, depicting the evangelists Luke and Matthew. Their children include the paleontologist and artist Irina Levshakova (1959–2016). Linnik died on 23 March 2009 at the age of 86.