Headlight bracelets in simulated colored gems by Kenneth Jay Lane.

Question: What do Jackson Pollock, Napoleon Bonaparte, contemporary art star (and former Providence resident) Kara Walker and costume jewelry king Kenneth Jay Lane have in common? Answer: All are the focus of must-see exhibits at area galleries and museums this fall.

The age-old fascination with art fakes and forgeries gets a 21st-century update in “Pollock Matters,” a controversial exhibit at Boston College’s McMullen Museum of Art that explores the relationship between Jackson Pollock and Herbert Matter, a Swiss-born photographer whose work may — or may not — have been a source for Pollock’s famous “drip paintings” from the 1940s and ’50s.

The main evidence for a Pollock-Matter connection is a group of small drip-style paintings discovered in 2002 by Matter’s son, Alex. But recent tests, including a pigment-analysis by researchers at Harvard University, suggest that the paintings aren’t by Pollock. The McMullen show (through Dec. 9) presents both sides of the controversy, then basically lets viewers decide for themselves.

Fakes of a more glittering sort are the focus of “Fabulous Fakes: Jewelry by Kenneth Jay Lane,” a RISD Museum exhibit (Oct. 28-Jan. 27) that surveys the work of the famed costume jewelry designer. A 1954 RISD grad, Lane is known for bringing high-end jewelry to the masses by creating classic designs in low-cost materials such as plastic and crystal. Fans of Lane’s buoyant bangles have included everyone from Jackie Kennedy and the Duchess of Windsor to Paris Hilton and Jessica Simpson.

Though often hailed as a brilliant military strategist, Napoleon Bonaparte also launched a stylistic revolution in French art and design. “Symbols of Power: Napoleon and the Art of the Empire Style, 1800-1815” at Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts explores the influence of French neoclassicism — the dominant style of the Napoleonic era — on painting, sculpture, fashion and the decorative arts. The show (Oct. 21-Jan. 27) features nearly 200 artworks, including many never before exhibited outside France.

French style is also on the menu at the Newport Art Museum, where “Barbizon to Impressionism: Rhode Island Painters of the Late 19th Century” (Oct. 28-Jan. 27) traces the impact of French art on Rhode Island artists. Art lovers looking for a more contemporary vibe, meanwhile, should check out installations by Japanese artist Yumi Kori at Brown University’s Bell Gallery (through Oct. 21) and the ever-provocative African-American artist Kara Walker at Harvard University’s Fogg Art Museum (Oct. 6-Nov. 11).

Also worth keeping on your radar screens this fall: the FirstWorksProv arts festival (Sept. 28-Nov. 3), the RISD Alumni + Student Fall Art Sale (Oct. 6, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.) and the Scituate Art Festival (Oct. 6-8, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.)