Jul 18, 2021

Looted Art Detector Tool: Swiss GLAMHACK2021



Objective: Identify high priority artworks for provenance research


Description: Online Free Digital Tool



Approach: Automatic text analysis using frequency counts

note: The frequency counts target textual indicators of UNCERTAINTY, UNRELIABILITY,  or ANONYMITY, as well as the possible presence of RED FLAG names related to NAZI-looted art, forced sales and duress sales. 
The resulting calculations do not signify that an artwork is looted. They simply quantify observations concerning the text for further analysis.

How it works: 
  • The user uploads a CSV file that contains provenance texts 
note: The uploaded CSV can contain other information as well - urls, titles, artists, etc. The only requirement is that it also contain one column with the provenance texts. 
The program will ask the user to enter the name of the column that contains the provenance text.

  • The Provenance Text Analyser calculates the number of times certain words appear in each provenance text and downloads a CSV named results.csv
note: The results.csv file contains all the original information uploaded by the user PLUS additional columns with the word counts.



  • The user opens this enhanced CSV in his/her preferred spreadsheet or other tool and sorts and filters the results to obtain a priority list of artworks most likely to have problematic provenances


Instructions/suggestions are provided to help the user sort the results.

1) Recommendation: Create an "Uncertainty Index" and sort in descending order

Uncertainty index = Uncertainty Flags/Word Count

Explanation: The artworks with the highest concentration of words like "probably, "likely", "maybe", "possibly" and "?" show high uncertainty about the provenance.  



  • The user has the option of uploading his/her own custom list of key indicators (words and names to count)
Explanation: The list of key words determines what is counted and how it is categorised. This list is flexible and a work in progress. Users are encouraged to download the existing list and add their own words and names. Indicators of UNCERTAINTY, UNRELIABILITY and ANONYMITY change little from one area to another (in English), however Red Flag names will differ from Nazi-looted art to looted antiquities or forgeries. 


FORMAT of the KEY INDICATORS (to count) file:
(content of default file at present)

wordtype of flag
likelyflaguncertainty
probablyflaguncertainty
possiblyflaguncertainty
maybeflaguncertainty
?flaguncertainty
private collectorflaganonymity
anonymousflaganonymity
art marketflaganonymity
unidentifiedflaganonymity
unknownflaganonymity
property of a European collectorflaganonymity
private collectionflaganonymity
property of a ladyflaganonymity
anon.flaganonymity
?flagpuncutation
[flagpuncutation
transferflagmove
removedflagmove
telephoneflagreliability
to at leastflagreliability
until at leastflagreliability
by 19flagreliability
before 19flagreliability
according toflagreliability
said to haveflagreliability

The user is encouraged to copy this file, add words or names and upload it in the Looted Art Detector

Example of file that includes some Red Flag names from the Art Looting Investigation Unit Red Flag list as well as the names of some Jewish collectors who were plundered)

One notes that several new types of flags appear: flagALIUred, flag plundered, and flagRestitutionCase.   

TO DOWNLOAD CSV below

wordtype of flag
likelyflaguncertainty
probablyflaguncertainty
possiblyflaguncertainty
maybeflaguncertainty
?flaguncertainty
private collectorflaganonymity
private collectionflaganonymity
anonymousflaganonymity
art marketflaganonymity
unidentifiedflaganonymity
unknownflaganonymity
property of a European collectorflaganonymity
private collectionflaganonymity
property of a ladyflaganonymity
anon.flaganonymity
?flagquestion
[flagbracket
transferflagmove
removedflagmove
telephoneflagreliability
to at leastflagreliability
until at leastflagreliability
by 19flagreliability
before 19flagreliability
according toflagreliability
said to haveflagreliability
BuchholzflagALIUred
HaberstockflagALIUred
WendlandflagALIUred
VömelflagALIUred
DietrichflagALIUred
VoemelflagALIUred
CailleuxflagALIUred
SkiraflagALIUred
FabianiflagALIUred
ColleflagALIUred
Raphael GerardflagALIUred
GöpelflagALIUred
GoepelflagALIUred
BirschanskyflagALIUred
BirchanskyflagALIUred
BirshanskyflagALIUred
MontagflagALIUred
Fritz NathanflagALIUred
Nathan GalleriesflagALIUred
BornheimflagALIUred
Fischer GalleryflagALIUred
Galerie FischerflagALIUred
BachstitzflagALIUred
BoehlerflagALIUred
LoeblflagALIUred
LoblflagALIUred
PetridesflagALIUred
BuemmingflagALIUred
WeinmuellerflagALIUred
LangeflagALIUred
HaukeflagALIUred
HauckeflagALIUred
VugestaflagALIUred
LohseflagALIUred
HermssenflagALIUred
GurlittflagALIUred
LindpaintnerflagALIUred
HinrichsenflagALIUred
WuesterflagALIUred
GoeringflagALIUred
HitlerflagALIUred
HannemaflagALIUred
Seyss-InquartflagALIUred
MuehlmannflagALIUred
DelaunoyflagALIUred
CramerflagALIUred
HoferflagALIUred
BuitenwegflagALIUred
Littmannflagplundered
Westfeldflagplundered
Grünbaumflagplundered
Gruenbaumflagplundered
Ledererflagplundered
Mendelssohn-Bartholdyflagplundered
Hatvanyflagplundered
Bendelflagplundered
Flechtheimflagplundered
Freundflagplundered
Emdenflagplundered
Lindonflagplundered
Glaserflagplundered
Priesterflagplundered
Silberbergflagplundered
Schmidlflagplundered
Schlossflagplundered
Anna Jafféflagplundered
Hessflagplundered
Emil Kaimflagplundered
Leo Lewinflagplundered
Theodor Loeweflagplundered
Wilhelm Perlhöfterflagplundered
Pringsheimflagplundered
Adolf Rothenbergflagplundered
Carl Sachsflagplundered
Hugo Simonflagplundered
Alexander Lewinflagplundered
Leo Lewinflagplundered
Leo Bondiflagplundered
Dorvilleflagplundered
Gutmannflagplundered
Goudstikkerflagplundered
Mahler-Werfelflagplundered
Richard Neumannflagplundered
Rosa Oppenheimerflagplundered
Schmidlflagplundered
Federico Gentili Di Giuseppeflagplundered
Frederick MontflagRestitutionCase
MondscheinflagRestitutionCase
BallflagRestitutionCase
Fritz NathanflagRestitutionCase
BuehrleflagRestitutionCase
SilbermanflagRestitutionCase
SperlingflagRestitutionCase
HeinemannflagRestitutionCase
KatzflagRestitutionCase
Edward SpeelmanflagRestitutionCase
Klaus PerlsflagRestitutionCase
Stephen HahnflagRestitutionCase
KnoedlerflagRestitutionCase
A & R BallflagRestitutionCase
FeigenflagRestitutionCase
DreyflagRestitutionCase
RosenbergflagRestitutionCase
PinakosflagRestitutionCase
KornfeldflagRestitutionCase
FeilchenfeldtflagRestitutionCase
BernoulliflagRestitutionCase
SchäferflagRestitutionCase
SchaefferflagRestitutionCase



The user is invited to copy or DOWNLOAD the above file, enhance it and use it in the Looted Art Detector in the optional step 3
. (3. (Optional) Replace default indicator file with custom CSV file)



About the Looted Art Detector tool

----
This free online Looted Art Detector tool uses code developed during the Swiss GLAMHACK2021 by Rae Knowler, 
building on code developed during the Swiss GLAMHACK2020.

It is an experimental work-in-progress.
Please test and share your feedback and questions, which will be integrated into the FAQ


PythonAnywhere: https://artdata.pythonanywhere.com


Documentation

Github: https://github.com/parisdata/2021GLAMHACK

developer Glamhack2021: Rae Knowler


The Looted Art Detector online tool is based on code developed at the Swiss GLAMHACK2020 (team: Julia Beck, Birk Weiberg, Tamalera, Laurel Zuckerman) 

Glamhack2020: https://www.openartdata.org/2020/06/art-provenance-dataset-text-analysis.html



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DATASETS with PROVENANCE to TEST

1. Detroit Institute of Arts European Paintings Acquired after 1932


DOWNLOAD CSV



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