How to solve the attic portrait puzzle in MADiSON

There are many twists and turns that you must take to solve the puzzles in MADiSON. One of the more difficult and time-consuming of these puzzles is the attic portrait puzzle. To solve it, you will need to progress through the game a ways to get your hands on all the necessary items. You will also need to do some math. Get your calculator ready, it’s time to solve a puzzle.

Where to find the portraits

The first step to solving this puzzle is obtaining all of the necessary portraits to complete it. When you first enter the attic, you will be able to get two of the portraits. One will be on the wall already and the other will be in the corner opposite where the ladder to get into the attic is. For the other two, you will need to solve a puzzle and complete more of the story.

After progressing a little farther into the game, you will find be able to go through the door near where the TV is located in the small living area. During this part, the statue of Mary will noticeably be gone and will reappear in the hallways. Go through the hallways and follow the path to the back past the projector and the shelves to find the study/office. Here, you will find one of the portraits on the wall.

The last portrait is found in grandpa’s bedroom. Collect the medallions needed for the solar medallion puzzle and complete the puzzle by putting them into the correct position on the wall in the bedroom. This will open a sliding wall nearby. Use the hammer to pull the nails out of the boards blocking the closet and grab the final portrait off the floor.

How to solve the attic puzzle

There is a note that you can find as soon as you enter the attic. This note is pictured in the image below and gives you the hint of adding and subtracting. This will be needed to complete the puzzle. On the back wall of the attic, interact with the hole to spot the number 43.

We cannot tell you what image goes in each location, but we can tell you how to complete the puzzle. Check the back of each image. You will see the ages 5, 56, 33, and 68. Use your instant camera to take pictures of the areas where the frames go in the attic. Doing this will reveal numbers on the wall as in the image below.

The numbers on the walls will all be the same; 38, 10, 25, and 13. The only difference is that they will appear in a random location in each playthrough. Add or subtract the numbers on the wall to 43 to figure out where each portrait goes. For example: 43 – 38 = 5. This means that the image with the age of 5 on it will go on the wall where the number 38 appeared. Do this for each of the images to complete the puzzle.