Linked ArtLinked Art is a community-driven initiative that brings together cultural heritage institutions to create a shared, usable data model and API for describing artwork, archives, and bibliographic material. Built on the CIDOC Conceptual Reference Model (CIDOC-CRM) and serialized in JSON-LD, Linked Art applies the principles of Linked Open Usable Data (LOUD) to make cultural heritage information genuinely accessible to developers and institutions alike. Version 1.0 of the model and API was released on February 19, 2025.
Background
Linked Art emerged from a recognition that while formal ontologies like CIDOC-CRM provide rigorous semantic foundations, their complexity can present a barrier to practical adoption by software developers and smaller institutions. The Linked Art community formed around 2017 with the goal of creating an application profile that selects and constrains CIDOC-CRM classes and properties into patterns that are straightforward to implement, while retaining the semantic richness needed for meaningful data integration.
The project is driven by the LOUD principles: data should be the right abstraction for the audience, be as usable as possible, be available via a consistent API, and be designed to be consumed by software. This developer-centric philosophy distinguishes Linked Art from many other standards in the cultural heritage space.
Purpose & Scope
Linked Art addresses the description of cultural heritage objects — primarily artwork but also extending to archives, textual documents, and bibliographic material. The data model covers:
- Physical objects — paintings, sculptures, artifacts, and their physical characteristics
- Provenance — ownership history, acquisitions, loans, auctions, custody transfers
- People and organizations — creators, owners, collectors, institutions
- Places — locations, geographic context
- Concepts — classification, materials, techniques
- Events — exhibitions, conservation activities
- Digital content — digital surrogates and digital objects
- Collections and sets — groupings of objects
The model includes vocabulary management with required, recommended, and optional terms, and provides JSON Schema validation for all entity types.
API Design
The Linked Art API (version 1.0) defines RESTful endpoints for twelve entity types:
| Endpoint | Description |
|---|---|
| Physical Objects | Artwork, artifacts, specimens |
| Visual Works | Images, designs, visual content |
| Textual Works | Texts, manuscripts, publications |
| Digital Objects | Digital files and surrogates |
| People | Individual persons |
| Groups | Organizations, departments, families |
| Places | Geographic locations |
| Concepts | Types, materials, techniques |
| Events | Exhibitions, periods, activities |
| Sets | Collections, series, aggregations |
| Provenance Activities | Ownership changes, custody transfers |
| Abstract Works | Musical compositions, performances |
The API uses JSON-LD as its serialization format and includes HAL-based link relations for data discovery, search capabilities, and JSON Schema documents for validation.
Serializations & Technical Formats
Linked Art uses JSON-LD as its primary and only serialization format, a deliberate choice to maximize usability for web developers. The JSON-LD context maps CIDOC-CRM URIs to developer-friendly property names. JSON Schema files are provided for each entity type to enable validation.
Governance & Maintenance
Linked Art is governed by the Linked Art Editorial Board and developed as a community effort. The project is open and collaborative, with development happening publicly on GitHub. Community communication takes place via Slack, and the project follows a code of conduct. The community includes major museums, technology organizations, and individual contributors from around the world.
Notable Implementations
Linked Art has been adopted or is being implemented by numerous major cultural heritage institutions:
- The J. Paul Getty Trust
- The Yale Center for British Art
- The National Gallery of Art (Washington, D.C.)
- The Rijksmuseum
- The Smithsonian Institution
- Various participants listed on the Linked Art community page
The project also maintains mappings to other standards including CDWA (Categories for the Description of Works of Art) and Schema.org.
Related Standards
- CIDOC-CRM — The formal ontology that provides the semantic foundation for Linked Art. Linked Art is an application profile of CIDOC-CRM, selecting and constraining its classes and properties.
- JSON-LD — The serialization format used exclusively by Linked Art for data interchange.
- IIIF — The International Image Interoperability Framework, frequently used alongside Linked Art for delivering digital images of cultural objects.