Art Detective: Put Your Knowledge of Places to Use

You may not think your love of travel could solve art mysteries, but the reality might surprise you. Of course, you also need to be at least an amateur art enthusiast. Consider yourself introduced to the Art Detective Initiative, a crowd- sourced project operating out of the U.K. designed to get informed members of the public to help identify unnamed people and landscapes in public works of art. Art Detective seeks to cull the knowledge of experts and enthusiasts from around the world by giving them a forum to suggest and discuss ambiguities in the art record.

Famous discoveries through the site include Hornby Castle and the Normandy Coast. Travelers have a unique perspective, especially if there is a city, site or place to which you return over and over again. You are clued into the details and textures of a place in a unique way and are also more likely to visit an obscure museum or corner than anyone else. It is this attention to detail that makes you a candidate for taking part in Art Detective, not to mention the myriad of images of art and geography in your cameras and phones that could assist in this process. Browse the latest discussion groups to see if any current mysteries capture your imagination.