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Art Collection Ethics

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ACE offers postgraduate, non-degree certificate programs, virtually and on campus. This page has summaries of our past trainings. 

See Current Program Information

 

Past Programs

Nazi-Era Art Provenance Research Training Program
  • June 24-28, 2024
Fundamentals of Nazi-Era Art Provenance Research
  • June 18–23, 2023
Fundamentals of Nazi-Era Art Provenance Research
  • August 2–6, 2021
Ethical Stewardship of Native American Collections
  • June 21–26, 2020 [cancelled due to COVID-19]
Woman looking at a painting with a laptop and a notebook for research

Nazi-Era Art Provenance Research

Hybrid Training Program

June 24–28, 2024

The Center for Art Collection Ethics (ACE) at the University of Denver (DU) held a hybrid training program on the fundamentals of Nazi-era art provenance research, June 24-28, 2024. In its third iteration since 2021, the program was geared toward graduate students and emerging museum and art market professionals. We offered an on-campus postgraduate certificate of completion to twenty students through an application process. In addition, anyone was able to register to attend select sessions virtually.

Our planning team included Renée Albiston, Associate Provenance Researcher at the Denver Art Museum; Antonia Bartoli, Curator of Provenance Research at the Yale University Art Gallery; and Elizabeth Campbell, Professor of History at DU and Director of ACE.

  • Program Summary

    The program included:

    • Interactive lectures and discussions with field experts including  historians, provenance researchers, attorneys, museum professionals and art market representatives
    • Discussion of the legal and ethical challenges in the stewardship of art lost, looted or displaced during the Nazi-era, and challenges for recovery from the perspective of claimants
    • Site visit to the Denver Art Museum
    • Keynote address by Dr. Evelien Campfens, Lecturer, Cultural Heritage Law and Looted Art and Restitution, University of Amsterdam: "Cross-border Claims to Looted Art: Obstacles and Models"
    • Information on archival and library resources in the United States and abroad 
    • Workshops on writing provenance narratives, transparency, and public engagement
    • Certificate students were required to participate in small group work on provenance research case studies using digital resources, and a presentation of findings through a symposium on the final day of the program
    • Speakers included:
      • Anne Dunn-Vaturi, Senior Provenance Researcher, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
      • Amelie Ebbinghaus, Director, Art Loss Register, London
      • Marc Masurovsky, Historian and Co-founder of the Holocaust Art Restitution Project (HARP)
      • Nicholas O’Donnell, Litigation Partner, Sullivan & Worcester LLP, Boston
      • Anna Rubin, Director, Holocaust Claims Processing Office of the New York Department of Financial Services
      • Carla Shapreau, Curator, Salz Collection of Stringed Instruments; Lecturer, School of Law; and Senior Fellow, Institute of European Studies, University of California, Berkeley
      • Laurel Zuckerman,Claimant in Zuckerman v. Metropolitan Museum of Art, editor Open Art Data
      • Jona Goldschmidt, claimant and grandson of Fritz and Thea Goldschmidt
      • Carrie Gough, President and Founder, Veritas Fine Art Appraisals & Consulting
      • Joanna Gohmann, Provenance Researcher & Object Historian, Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art
      • Jacques Schuhmacher, Senior Provenance Research Curator, Victoria & Albert Museum, London
  • Detailed Schedule

    For seamless and secure program delivery, we are using the OpenWater virtual conferencing platform. 

    Anyone may register to attend hybrid sessions online, as a “non-certificate student,” for a modest daily fee. Session recordings will be available to all registrants until May 2025. Recordings will be available about a week after the end of the program.

    There is no charge for the streamed sessions at the Denver Art Museum on Wednesday, June 26. 

    If you need registration assistance, please contact the support team at the Center for Professional Development at (303)-871-2291. 

    Online attendance (non-certificate) registration deadline: Thursday, June 20, 2024 at 5pm MDT. 

    Register by the Day 

     

    Online Attendance Schedule: Fundamentals of Nazi-Era Art Provenance Research, June 24 - 28, 2024 

    Monday, June 24, 2024 

    The Mechanisms and Legacy of Nazi Art Plunder; Provenance Research Resources 

    Moderator: Elizabeth Campbell, University of Denver  

    9:00 – 9:15 am: Welcome and introductions with ACE Director, Elizabeth Campbell. Introduction of planning team members. 

    9:15 – 10:30 am: The Mechanisms and Legacy of Nazi Art Plunder, Elizabeth Campbell, Director, Center for Art Collection Ethics, University of Denver 

    10:30 – 10:45 am: Break  

    10:45 am – 12:00 pm: Claimants’ Panel: Carrie Baker, President and Founder, Veritas Fine Art Appraisals & Consulting; Jona Goldschmidt, Claimant and grandson of Fritz and Thea Goldschmidt; Laurel Zuckerman, Claimant in Zuckerman v. Metropolitan Museum of Art, editor Open Art Data 

    12:00 – 1:00 pm: Lunch  

    1:00 – 2:00 pm: Overview of provenance research sources, Antonia Bartoli, Curator of Provenance Research at the Yale University Art Gallery 

    2:00 – 2:15 pm: Break  

    2:15 – 3:00 pm: NARA Resources, Sylvia Naylor, Archivist, National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) 

    3:30 – 4:30 pm: Resources at the Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles, Sandra van Ginhoven, Head, Getty Provenance Index, Getty Research Institute with recorded presentation by Sally McKay, Head, Research Services and Specialist in Provenance, Getty Research Institute   

    4:30 – 5:00 pm: Wrap-up discussion: What have we learned? Additional conversation and Q&A 

     

    Tuesday, June 25, 2024 

    Archival Resources; the Art Loss Register; Legal Solutions: Litigation and Alternative Dispute Resolution; a case study at Yale University 

    9:00 – 9:05 am: Daily welcome by Elizabeth Campbell, Director, Center for Art Collection Ethics, University of Denver 

    9:05 – 9:45 am: Exploring Resources at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM), Washington, D.C., Megan Lewis, Reference Librarian at United States Holocaust Memorial Museum 

    9:45 – 10:00 am: Break 

    10:00 – 11:00 am: 25 Years of the Washington Principles: Progress and Lack Thereof, Marc Masurovsky, Historian and Co-founder of the Holocaust Art Restitution Project (HARP) 

    11:15 am – 12:15 pm: Due Diligence and Digital Research at the Art Loss Register, Amelie Ebbinghaus, Director, Art Loss Register, London 

    12:15 – 1:15 pm: Lunch at Central Market food court, Community Commons 

    1:15 – 2:30 pm: Legal Approaches to Art Restitution Claims, Nicholas O’Donnell, Litigation Partner, Sullivan & Worcester LLP, Boston; Anna Rubin, Director, Holocaust Claims Processing Office of the New York Department of Financial Services 

    2:30 – 2:45 pm: Break 

    2:45 – 3:45: Research Resources at the Frick, Elizabeth Kobert, Archivist, Frick Art Reference Library; Suz Massen, Associate Chief Librarian, Access, Frick Art Reference Library; John McQuaid, Photoarchive Lead, Frick Art Reference Library 

    3:45 pm – 4:00 pm: Break 

    4:00 – 5:15 pm: The Schaefer Collection at Yale: A Case Study, Antonia Bartoli, Curator of Provenance Research at the Yale University Art Gallery 

    5:15 – 5:45 pm: Wrap-up discussion: What have we learned? Additional conversation and Q&A

    6:00 – 6:30 pm: Dinner at Central Market food court, Community Commons 

     

    Wednesday, June 26, 2024 

    Case Studies at the Denver Art Museum (DAM) 

    10:00 – 11:30 am: Grotesque Allegories: Exploring the Provenance & History of Arcimboldo’s Summer & Autumn, Renée Albiston, Associate Provenance Researcher, Denver Art Museum 

    11:30 am – 2:00 pm: Lunch  

    2:00 - 3:30 pm: Repatriations over a Half-Century, Lori Iliff, Senior Provenance Researcher, Denver Art Museum 

     

    Thursday, June 27, 2024 

    Writing Provenance Narratives; Sharing Research with the Public; Research Beyond Paintings 

    8:30 – 8:35 am: Daily welcome by Elizabeth Campbell.  

    8:35 – 9:15 am: Provenance Research Today: 25 Years After the Washington Principles, Meike Hopp, Professor for Digital Provenance Research at the Technische Universität Berlin 

    9:15 – 9:30: Break 

    9:30 – 10:30: Exhibition Narratives and Presenting Provenance Research to the Public, Jacques Schuhmacher, Senior Provenance Research Curator, Victoria & Albert Museum, London 

    10:30 – 10:45 am: Break 

    10:45 am – 12:00 pm: Writing a provenance narrative, Antonia Bartoli, Curator of Provenance Research at the Yale University Art Gallery, Renée Albiston, Associate Provenance Researcher, Denver Art Museum 

    12:00 – 1:00 pm: Lunch  

    1:00 – 2:30 pm: Beyond Paintings: Provenance Research on Asian art, near Eastern Antiquities and Archaeological property, and musical instruments and manuscripts, Anne Dunn-Vaturi, Senior Provenance Researcher, Department of Ancient Near Eastern Art, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; Joanna M. Gohmann, Provenance Researcher & Object Historian, Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art; Carla Shapreau, Curator, Salz Collection of Stringed Instruments; Lecturer, School of Law; and Senior Fellow, Institute of European Studies, University of California, Berkeley 

    2:30 – 2:45 pm: Break 

    2:45 – 3:45 pm: After the Research: Provenance at Work, Renée Albiston, Associate Provenance Researcher, Denver Art Museum; Mac Coyle, Provenance Research Fellow, Denver Art Museum

     

    Friday, June 28, 2024 

    Keynote Address and Student Symposium 

    8:00 – 9:30 am: Keynote Address: Cross-border Claims to Looted Art: Obstacles and Models, Dr. Evelien Campfens, Lecturer, Cultural Heritage Law and Looted Art and Restitution, University of Amsterdam 

    9:30 am – 1:00 pm: Break; certificate students finalize presentations 

    1:00 – 4:00 pm: Symposium: Five group presentations by certificate students with short breaks between panels  

    4:00 – 4:15 pm: Break 

    4:15 – 5:00 pm: Debrief: What have we learned? Q&A with the experts and conclusion of the virtual program.

Photograph of an old ledger in German. There are other handwritten documents that are yellowed with age in the background.

Fundamentals of Nazi-Era Art Provenance Research

Hybrid Training Program

June 18-23, 2023

The Center for Art Collection Ethics (ACE) at the University of Denver (DU) held a hybrid training program on the fundamentals of Nazi-era art provenance research, June 18–23, 2023. In partnership with DU’s Center for Professional Development, the program was geared toward graduate students in any field and emerging museum professionals, with selected streamed sessions available to the broader public. We offered an on-campus postgraduate certificate of completion to twenty students through an application process, with generous support from the Samuel H. Kress Foundation. In addition, non-certificate students and other attendees were able to attend selected sessions virtually. 

Our planning team included Renée Albiston, Associate Museum Director of Kirkland Museum Fine & Decorative Art, who also conducts Nazi-era provenance research at the Denver Art Museum; Elizabeth Campbell, Associate Professor of History at DU and Director of ACE; and MacKenzie Mallon, Specialist, Provenance, Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri.  

  • Program Summary

    The certificate program includes:  

    • Interactive lectures and discussions with top historians, provenance researchers and museum staff, with break-out sessions to allow smaller group discussions. 
    • Workshops on legal and ethical challenges in the stewardship and trade of Nazi-looted art.  
    • A case study of the Paul Rosenberg collection, presented by MaryKate Cleary, Lecturer of Art Business at Sotheby’s Institute of Art, London.  
    • Site visit to the Denver Art Museum, where Renée Albiston will present case studies of pieces she researched, with recto and verso observation of paintings. 
    • Site visit to the Kirkland Museum of Fine & Decorative Art, for a tour of the collection and a discussion on the challenges of researching decorative art objects. 
    • Information on archival resources abroad and in the United States, including presentations by Sylvia Naylor from the National Archives and Records Administration, Megan Lewis at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Anna Bottinelli at the Monuments Men and Women Foundation, and experts at the Getty Research Institute in Los Angeles. 
    • Discussion of available resources on databases, and the long-proposed but unfulfilled mission to create a single database with data on Nazi-plundered art, by Marc Masurovsky, co-founder of the Holocaust Art Restitution Project.
    • Workshops on writing provenance narratives, transparency, and making research public, facilitated by Renée Albiston and MacKenzie Mallon. 
    • For certificate students: small group work on provenance research case studies using digital resources, and presentation of findings during a symposium the final day of the program.  
    • The week concludes with a keynote address by David Zivie, Head of the Mission for the Research and Restitution of Spoliated Cultural Property between 1933 and 1945, in the French Ministry of Culture. 
Woman pulls out art stacks at University of Denver Art Collections

Fundamentals of Nazi-Era Art Provenance Research

Virtual Training Program

August 2–6, 2021

The Center for Art Collection Ethics (ACE) at the University of Denver (DU) held a fully virtual training program on the fundamentals of Nazi-era art provenance research, August 2–6, 2021. Our program was geared toward graduate students in any field and emerging museum professionals, with sessions available to the broader public. We offered a postgraduate certificate of completion to twenty students through an application process, with full scholarships provided by the Samuel H. Kress Foundation. 

Our planning team included Renée Albiston, Associate Museum Director of Kirkland Museum Fine & Decorative Art, who also has conducted provenance research at the Denver Art Museum; Elizabeth Campbell, Associate Professor of History at DU and Director of ACE; Angelica Daneo, Chief Curator and Curator of European Art before 1900 at the Denver Art Museum; and MacKenzie Mallon, Specialist, Provenance, Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri. 

  • Program Summary
    The program included: 

    • Interactive lectures and discussions with top historians, provenance researchers and museum staff, with break-out groups to allow smaller group discussions. 

    • Virtual visits to the University of Denver and the Denver Art Museum collections, followed by live Q&A sessions with the curators and provenance researchers.  

    • Object case studies illustrating ownership evidence on the back of painting frames. 

    • Information on archival resources in the United States and abroad featuring Meike Hopp, Professor for Digital Provenance at the Technische Universität Berlin.

    • Presentations of digital resources including the ERR Jeu de Paume database and the Jewish Digital Cultural Recovery Project, by Marc Masurovsky.

    • A roundtable on legal and ethical dimensions of Nazi-era art stewardship, including Nicholas O’Donnell, attorney at Sullivan and Worcester in Boston.

    • Perspectives from claimants themselves, including Simon Goodman, descendant of Fritz Gutmann and author of "The Orpheus Clock."

    • Interactive workshops on writing provenance narratives, essential information, and making findings public, featuring Jacques Schumacher, Provenance and Spoliation Curator at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London.

    • For certificate students: small group work on provenance research case studies using digital resources, and presentation of findings through a symposium the final day of the program. 

    • Keynote address by Jane Milosch, Visiting Professorial Fellow at the University of Glasgow and former Founding Director of the Smithsonian Provenance Research Initiative, and the PREP exchange program of German and American curators: “A Decade of International Provenance Research and Exchange at the Smithsonian (2009-2019): Looking Back, Looking Forward.” 

Detailed Schedule

indigenous art exhibit

Ethical Stewardship of Native American Collections

June 21–26, 2020 [cancelled due to COVID-19]

Working with partners in the historic tribes of Colorado—the Ute, Cheyenne and Arapaho—we designed a truly Native-centered certificate program that featured talks by renowned experts, including Dakota Hoska [Oglala Lakhóta], Joseph [Woody] Aguilar [San Ildefonso Pueblo], and Cynthia Chavez Lamar [San Felipe Pueblo/Hopi/Tewa/Navajo]. We planned sessions with artists and practitioners at the Denver Art Museum and History Colorado, and in partnership with the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, built an object study assignment, using Native items and the museum archive collection.

We greatly regret the cancellation of the program, due to concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic, and are discussing possibilities for future programs. In the meantime, please enjoy our interview series with experts who would have shared their expertise in the certificate program.