Art, Cultural Heritage & Law: Organizations

Center for Art Law

• States it is "a nonprofit organization that conducts research and offers resources and programming for the advancement of a vibrant arts community."

• Describes/links to application instructions for internships and graduate fellowships at the Center for Art Law's DUMBO office (in Brooklyn, NY).  This Center states: "priority may be given to applications received early." 

  • Highlights the Judith Bresler Fellowship for recent law school graduates.  Deadline for Academic Year 2024-2025 Judith Bresler Fellowship applications was: May 1, 2024. 

• Provides a free monthly art law newsletter to which researchers can subscribe.  Highlights art law news/publications, art law events in New York (and in other places), and art law jobs that are taking applications.

• July 2024: BLS Library will begin a new institutional subscription to materials from this Center, including: an extensive library of this Center's blog posts; recordings and materials/handouts from this Center's past events; and access to a redesigned Case Law Corner (which tracks "lawsuits involving artworks, cultural property, artists’ estates, galleries" and more topics).

The Institute of Art & Law

• States it "offers knowledge and training in all aspects of the law relating to art and cultural heritage."

• Provides Latest IAL News.

• Provides a free search feature for articles published in Art, Antiquity and Law (a quarterly journal). 

  • BLS Library has both an active print subscription to Art, Antiquity and Law (Call #: K1 .R76, Location: Int'l., Cellar Level) and a digital subscription w/ a 3-year embargo in HeinOnline. 

• Offers distance learning, seminar-based and in-house courses.

International Council of Museums (ICOM)

• States it "promotes the exchange of expertise and knowledge in the museums and heritage field on an international level."
• Publishes ICOM Red Lists of Cultural Objects at Risk ("inventoried objects within the collections of recognised institutions" that could be subject to theft/trafficking) + provides Red Lists Database.
• With publisher Taylor and Francis, provides a list of issues/recent articles in ICOM's peer-reviewed journal: Museum International.
  • Taylor & Francis provides some open access articles.
  • NYPL provides a number of years of Museum International [1997- present?] through a digital subscription available for on-site use at NYPL's Library for the Performing Arts, Schomburg Center & Stephen A. Schwarzman Building.

Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts

• States it "is the leading legal aid and education organization dedicated to New York artists and its arts and cultural organizations."
• Deeply discounts its programs, workshops and on-demand recordings for students.  See its events calendar.  Examples:
  • Program: Basic Legal Guide for Visual Artists with Q&A (July 10, 2024) - $25 for a full-time student.
  • On-demand video: Copyright and Trademark Considerations for Using Generative AI Technology - $5 for a full-time student.

U.S. Dep't. of Homeland Security, Cultural Property, Art & Antiquities (CPAA) Investigations

• States: "U.S. federal customs laws regarding smuggling and trafficking provide Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agents the unique authority, jurisdiction, and responsibility to lead criminal investigations and support prosecutions involving the illicit importation and distribution of stolen or looted cultural property."
• Links to What We Investigate: Cultural Property, Art, and Antiquities Smuggling.
• Describes ICE cultural heritage repatriations.

U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Art Crime

• States that the FBI's Art Crime Team:
  • "Address[es] art and cultural property crime cases in assigned geographic regions."
  • "Assist[s] in art-related investigations worldwide in cooperation with foreign law enforcement officials and FBI legal attaché offices."  
• Maintains the National Stolen Art File, which the FBI describes as "an online database of stolen art and cultural property."
• Provides Art Crime News + descriptions of FBI Top Ten Art Crimes here.

International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL), Cultural Heritage Crime

• Provides the overview: The issues - cultural property.

• Maintains the International Stolen Works of Art Database.  INTERPOL states: "Anyone can apply to become an authorized user of the database, to check in real-time if an item is among the registered objects, using our Application form."

UNESCO > Culture