Theft and Vandalism: Assessing Risk Factors for Art and Cultural Heritage

This virtual seminar will cover the most prevalent risk factors for theft and vandalism of art and cultural heritage and how they manifest in different situations. This will be illustrated by an array of past and present case studies such as the recent Louvre jewel heist. We will also discuss how these risk factors are complicated and amplified in high-risk political and conflict scenarios, and will outline the steps that guardians of cultural heritage can take when assessing and protecting the collections, sites, and objects in their care.

Gretchen Allen is Chair of the Irish National Committee of the Blue Shield. She instructs on pre-deployment Cultural Property Protection courses for the United Nations Training School in Ireland (UNTSI), and for  Gardaí deploying to Cyprus through UNIFCYP at Templemore Garda College. She has lectured on art crime, conflict, and vandalism for the IIC and ICRI. Her academic work focuses on the role of the conservator in mitigating the damage done by the criminal elements of the art market and by international conflict. Gretchen is a book and paper conservator and serves as Senior Conservator at the National Archives of Ireland.

Gretchen undertook her BA in Art Conservation at Scripps College, graduating in 2014. Following that, she completed her MA in Book Conservation at Camberwell College of Arts (University of Arts, London) in 2016 and a Postgraduate Certification (PGCert) in Antiquities Trafficking and Art Crime at the University of Glasgow in 2019.