RICHMOND, VA.- The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts announced the appointment of Karen Daly as the museum’s first Senior Manager of Provenance Research. Daly assumed the new role on March 10, 2025.

The objective of provenance research is to trace the ownership history and location of an object, ideally from its creation to the present. VMFA conducts research on all works of art in its collection.

“The creation of this new full-time position at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts demonstrates our commitment to proactively researching the provenance of the more than 50,000 objects in our collection and sharing this information with the public,” said Director and CEO Alex Nyerges. “We are delighted that Karen will lead this important effort.”

Daly brings to the position more than 25 years of experience in museum collections management and registration. For more than a decade, she has served as both the senior registrar for exhibitions and the museum’s part-time provenance specialist. She contributed her valuable insights to the landmark 2005 publication Vitalizing Memory: International Perspectives in Provenance Research and participated in the 2017 German and American Provenance Research Exchange Program (PREP) for Museum Professionals. Daly earned her M.A. in art history from Virginia Commonwealth University.

“I am grateful to be able to bring my institutional history to this new role. My varied experience with VMFA’s wonderful encyclopedic collection has prepared me to focus on provenance research,” Daly said. “I am excited to collaborate with my incredible colleagues to expand VMFA’s provenance program and to train staff in provenance research and standards. I also look forward to further engagement with national and international networks on behalf of VMFA.”

As Senior Manager of Provenance Research, Daly will oversee provenance research on all objects in VMFA’s permanent art collection and identify research priorities with key staff. This vital role will coordinate efforts across all museum departments engaged in collections scholarship and stewardship. Working with Dr. Michael Taylor, VMFA’s Artistic Director and Chief Curator, as well as the museum’s 15 curators and other integral staff, she will help develop protocols and conduct research on works in the permanent art collection, as well as future acquisitions, deaccessions and loans. Daly will also respond to restitution claims and expand public access to this information via the museum’s website.

“Karen Daly is an internationally recognized expert in provenance research, cultural property, repatriation and restitution,” said Dr. Taylor. “She will advance the museum’s provenance and restitution efforts, ensuring that provenance-related best practices are integrated throughout the institution in agreement with national and international guidelines and VMFA’s mission.”

Provenance research is essential to ensuring that all objects in the museum’s collection are lawfully held and rightfully owned, thereby maintaining public trust. Museums have traditionally conducted provenance research as part of the overall approach to curatorial research. Within the last few decades, there has been an increased focus on the provenance of museum objects, and the field has gained in importance and become a focus of study.

In keeping with guidelines issued by the American Association of Museum Directors (AAMD) and the American Alliance of Museums (AAM), one focus of provenance research at VMFA is on paintings, sculpture, works on paper and other objects that were created before 1946 and that might have been stolen or looted in Europe between 1933 and 1945. Since 2004, VMFA has resolved four Nazi era art claims, three of which were returned to rightful owners and one of which remained in the collection through a compensation agreement.

The museum also follows AAM and AAMD guidelines and standards regarding the provenance of archaeological materials and ancient art. In 2023, VMFA repatriated 44 works of ancient art to Italy, Egypt and Türkiye.
VMFA is also fully compliant with the 1990 Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), which was updated in 2024. The museum has repatriated five objects to their respective tribal communities.

Provenance research is an ongoing endeavor, and VMFA is continually updating its provenance data and sharing this information on its website.