Art Historian LFW is devoted to examining all the different opportunities I have with my skill set. This is for all students who are thinking that maybe getting a Ph.D isn’t the only path. We have options. Yes, we have skills to offer the work place.
Art Crime Prevention
Careers: Civilian Police Officer RCMP (Or FBI for my American friends)
Who tracks down people who have stolen art? Who identifies stolen art? The persons involved in Art Crime Prevention. Admittedly, not the easiest profession to get into, since at the moment there is a very small trial Art Theft team in Canada, based out of Montreal. You would technically be a Civilian officer for the RCMP that specializes in Art History. Actually Canada’s general lack of interest in Art Theft makes it one of the best places to sell stolen art.
Americans have slightly better luck that there is a twenty person Art Theft branch in FBI. Robert K. Wittman, the founder of the FBI’s Art Crime Team, wrote a book called Priceless: How I Went Undercover To Rescue The World’s Stolen Treasures (2010).
Also, Los Angeles Police Department has the only full time law enforcement unit devoted to art crime.
ARCA (The Association for Research into Crimes against Art) has a good blog covering various Art Crimes and offers a one year MA program in Art Crime prevention in Italy.
After seven years of police (including RCMP or FBI) service you can join Interpol (International Police) and work on larger cases.
No, it’s not going to be constant action like a crime drama, but if you have an interest in crime and art, this may be a career for you.
Skills: Art Identification, Conservation, Bravery?, Research Skills, Familiarity with Art Circles, Art Trade, Art Management, Patience
Chromium Lemonade 