Provenance by Gail Feigenbaum (Editor); Inge Reist (Editor)This book goes beyond the narrow definition of the term provenance, which addresses only the bare facts of ownership and transfer, to explore ideas about the origins and itineraries of objects, consider the historical uses of provenance research, and draw attention to the transformative power of ownership. The result is a volume of essays that makes a strong case for recuperating provenance - what contributing author Anne Higonnet calls so many epic tales compressed into such dry lists - for the history of art. Provenance attends to the social life of art, a work¿s biography subsequent to the moment of its origin. Provenance offers a broad perspective, ranging from ancient archaeology to conceptual art, that encompasses Europe, Asia, and the Americas, and considers a variety of media. The essays demonstrate in myriad ways how an owner¿s relationship with a work of art or, in varying degrees, with the object¿s previous owners can change irrevocably the way the work will be perceived and understood by future generations.
Museums and Restitution by Louise Tythacott (Editor); Konstantinos ArvanitisThis book examines contemporary approaches to restitution from the perspective of museums. It focuses on the ways in which these institutions have been addressing the subject at a regional, national and international level. In particular, it explores contemporary practices and recent claims, and investigates to what extent the question of restitution as an issue of ownership is still at large, or whether museums have found additional ways to conceptualise and practice restitution, by thinking beyond the issue of ownership. The challenges, benefits and drawbacks of recent and current museum practice are explored. At the same time, the book discusses how these museum practices are received , and informed, by source communities, institutional and governmental agendas and visitors' expectations in order to explore issues of authority, collaboration and shared or conflicting values between the different communities involved in the process. This important book will contribute to the developing body of literature that academics, professionals, policy makers and students can refer to in order to understand how restitution has been negotiated, 'materialised', practiced and evaluated within museums.
The Project for the Study of Collecting and Provenance (PSCP) aligns the Getty Research Institute's collections and the expertise of its staff with the work of scholars interested in the history of collecting, provenance, and display around the world.