Connecting art histories through messy data: rethinking museum database interfaces for (curatorial) research

The digitization of museum collections has vastly expanded access to cultural heritage, yet current museum database interfaces remain structurally limited, offering rigid search functionalities that hinder exploratory and in-depth art historical and curatorial research. This paper introduces Connecting Art Histories Through Messy Data (Structures), a prototype web application designed to address the disconnect between data availability and usability on fine arts museum websites. The tool enables researchers and professionals to upload collection data, enrich it with external datasets, and query it through an SQLite interface, accompanied by an integrated AI assistant. The app is not about the completeness or precision of the data, nor about spectacular data visualizations, but about the possibilities that emerge from embracing incompleteness and imprecision–messy data (structures). Special features include an add gender tool and a geographic mapping function that beyond their functionality reveal structural inconsistencies and prompt further investigation into missing data, historical attributions, and categorization practices.