COMPUTATIONAL APPROACHES TO ART CRIME RESEARCH: NETWORK ANALYSIS AND THE CASE OF ANTE TOPIĆ MIMARA
Liran Lea Assaf · 2025
This thesis focuses on computational approaches to art crime research through a networked analysis centered on Ante Topić Mimara, a man who deceived the postwar restitution process and fraudulently claimed many artworks and objects of value. This study deploys network analyses and other traditional and digital methodologies to understand Mimara’s history and examine his position within the larger context of Nazi-era provenance research. By establishing the provenance histories of these stolen works though a close study of primary source archival documents, an analysis of social networks using collected data reveals otherwise hidden connections between key actors. This study contributes to the broader understanding of Mimara’s theft though an investigation of various networks surrounding his stolen paintings.