Stephanie Brown is program coordinator and senior lecturer in Johns Hopkins University’s MA in Museum Studies. Brown has spent twenty years in the museum field as an archivist, curator of material culture, museum director, consultant, and professor. She is a past co-chair of the American Alliance of Museum’s Museum Studies Network. She has taught and lectured about museums, museum collections, and art history at the Haggin Museum, Hillwood Estate, Museum, and Gardens, Long Island University, Santa Clara University, Stanford University, and the University of San Francisco.
Transforming a painting's provenance into page-turner, Brown brilliantly weaves together the art world of late nineteenth and early twentieth-century France, an American heiress, and an ambitious California town. Along the way, she expertly illuminates critical questions around historical sources, authenticity, value, and meaning over time. This book demonstrates why art history is such an essential field of study. As Stephanie Brown demonstrates, paintings are not just pictures; they are records of connection over time. --Elizabeth Chew, CEO, South Carolina Historical Society The Case of the Disappearing Gauguin is a captivating exploration of art authentication through the real-life journey of one painting. Through meticulous research and masterful storytelling, Brown unravels a mystery set in the intricate world of auction houses, collectors, and provenance research. It's a fascinating and provocative tale. --Phyllis Hecht, Founding Director, Johns Hopkins University Museum Studies Program