Provenance

Producing high quality research on the objects in its collection is among LACMA’s primary responsibilities. The study of provenance—the history of an artwork’s ownership—is essential to this research. The history of an object’s movement across locations and between owners provides a fuller understanding of the object before it arrived at LACMA, as well as valuable insights into the history of art and art collecting. We seek to establish an object’s history of ownership from creation to its acquisition by the museum.

Determining an object’s provenance can be a lengthy, complex, and difficult process. Research involves physical examination of artworks for labels, inscriptions, and marks, which may indicate movement of an artwork to another owner or location. Researchers also consult museum object files and archives, as well as artist, collector, and dealer records when possible. It is not unusual for an artwork to have a long period in its ownership history that is unaccounted for. Previous owners may have sought anonymity, auction houses or dealers may not reveal their sources, or critical archival resources may have been lost, destroyed, or otherwise remain inaccessible. Research may involve consulting archives in multiple countries in multiple languages.

LACMA is engaged in long-term study of the provenance of its collection, and new information will be added to the website as our research continues. We appreciate the galleries, museums, auction houses, dealers, archives, and individuals who have assisted with this research. Every piece of information is a valuable contribution to the history of a work of art.

LACMA welcomes any information that would augment or clarify the provenance of works in our collection. Please send suggestions to @email.

Note: Founded in 1910, the Los Angeles Museum of History, Science, and Art, transferred works of art to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) in 1961.

In accordance with the 2001 American Alliance of Museums’ Standards Regarding the Unlawful Appropriation of Objects During the Nazi–Era (formerly Guidelines Concerning the Unlawful Appropriation of Objects During the Nazi–Era), LACMA is committed to publishing provenance information on this website regarding works of art that were created before 1946 that underwent a change of ownership between 1932 and 1946 and that were or might reasonably be thought to have been in continental Europe between those dates. Because of the widespread loss of artwork through wartime looting, Nazi confiscation, and forced sales due to persecution, particular attention is paid to changes in the ownership during this time period. Including a work on this list does not suggest a history of Nazi misappropriation; rather, it indicates that the object was in Europe during the years 1932–1946 and could have changed hands during those years.

Download a spreadsheet of the works in our Nazi–Era research project.

Provenance entries for works of art in LACMA’s Modern collection are listed in chronological order, beginning with the earliest known owner, which is often the artist’s studio.

When known, life dates of owners are included, enclosed in ( ) parentheses.
Dealers, auction houses or agent transactions are enclosed in [ ] brackets.

Relationships between owners and methods of transfers are indicated by punctuation:

A semicolon (;) is used to indicate that the work passed directly between two owners (including auction houses, agents, or dealers).
A period (.) is used to separate two owners (including dealers, auction houses, or agents) if a direct transfer did not occur or is not known to have occurred.

In-text notes are used to document or clarify information.

Provenance Research Resources

We have provided links to other websites maintained by organizations and institutions worldwide that are committed to assisting in the search and recovery of works of art lost during the Nazi–Era.

Art Loss Register
Association of Art Museum Directors Object Registry
Association of Art Museum Directors Standards and Practices
Catalogue of the Musées nationaux Récupération site of the Ministry of Culture, France
Commission for Looted Art in Europe
Commission for Art Recovery
Commission for Looted Art in Europe
Cultural Plunder by the Einsatzstab Reichsleiter Rosenberg
Getty Provenance Index
International Foundation for Art Research
International Research Portal for Records Related to Nazi–Era Cultural Property
Lost Art Internet Database
Museum Security Network
Nazi–Era Provenance Internet Portal
Advisory Committee on the Assessment of Restitution, The Netherlands
US Holocaust Memorial Museum, Research in Collections
US National Gallery of Art: World War II Resources at the Gallery

LACMA welcomes any information that would augment or clarify the provenance of these works. Please contact us at provenance@lacma.org.

Beginning in 2008, the date of the relevant AAMD guidelines, if an artwork is an antiquity or otherwise possible archaeological material without documented provenance prior to 1970, as set forth in the AAMD guidelines, museums must justify the acquisition of the artwork as one of the exceptions to the 1970 provenance rule set forth by AAMD. This justification, including an image of the artwork, will also be reported on AAMD’s object registry. LACMA continues to review artworks in its collection acquired after 2008, together with new acquisitions, that are exceptions to the 1970 rule.