New Sources for Research on the Art Trade in the National Socialist Era

Auction catalogues are critical for the study of the art market in modern times. Moreover, they are an important tool for provenance research — the study of the history of art ownership. Now, all auction catalogues published in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland between 1930 and 1945 are being recorded bibliographically, digitised and published online through the international cooperative project “German Sales 1930-1945. Art Works, Art Markets, and Cultural Policy“. Researchers will be able to find all available information on sold works of art in the Getty Provenance Index research database. Auction catalogues are frequently the only possibility for identifying works of art or objects of cultural value that were taken from their rightful owners during the Nazi regime and then sold. The findings of this project will offer new insight into the relationship between art and cultural policy of the early 1930s and National Socialism. For this project, Heidelberg University Library has partnered with the Art Library of the National Museums in Berlin and the Getty Research Institute in Los Angeles. The project is funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG), the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), and the Volkswagen Foundation.

Representatives of the three partner institutions will present the project at a press conference on 11 May 2012.

The press conference will take place on:
Friday, 11 May 2012, 2:30 p.m.
Heidelberg University Library, Plöck 107‐109
Manuscript Reading Room (ground floor, East wing)

The following project representatives will be present:
Prof. Dr. Bernhard Eitel, Rector, Heidelberg University
Dr. Veit Probst, Director, Heidelberg University Library
Prof. Dr. Thomas W. Gaehtgens, Director, Getty Research Institute Los Angeles (USA)
Dr. Joachim Brand, Associate Director, Art Library of the National Museums in Berlin

Registration for the press conference:
Media representatives attending the press conference
are asked to register by 9 May 2012 at
Heidelberg University Library
Phone +49 6221 54-2581, presse@ub.uni-heidelberg.de

Contact:
Communications and Marketing
Press Office, phone: +49 6221 54-2311
presse@rektorat.uni-heidelberg.de