---
title: "ER Model: Artist"
subtitle: "Linked Open Exhibition"
description: "A unified data model for artists aligned with CIDOC CRM, Wikibase4Research, and Wikidata standards"
date: today
---

## Overview

This data model provides a standardized schema for describing artists and their biographical information within the Linked Open Exhibition ecosystem. It is aligned with three major sector standards:

- **CIDOC CRM** (Conceptual Reference Model) v7.1.3
- **Wikibase4Research** (WB4R) - NFDI4Culture platform
- **Wikidata** - WikiProject Exhibitions

## Quick Reference: Schema Mappings

| Field | Wikidata | CIDOC CRM | Wikibase4Research |
|-------|----------|-----------|-------------------|
| **Entity** | P31:Q5 (instance of human) | E21_Person | wgm:human (Q5) |
| **Given Name** | P735 | P1_is_identified_by (E82_Appellation) | wgm:title (P4) |
| **Family Name** | P734 | P1_is_identified_by (E82_Appellation) | wgm:title (P4) |
| **Profession** | P106 | P2_has_type (E55_Type) | wgm:classified_as (P97) |
| **Birth Date** | P569 | P82_at_some_time_within (E52_Time-Span) | wgm:date (P12) |
| **Death Date** | P570 | P82_at_some_time_within (E52_Time-Span) | wgm:date (P12) |
| **Nationality** | P27 | P2_has_type (E55_Type_Nationality) | wgm:classified_as (P97) |
| **Reference** | Q-identifier | P1_is_identified_by (E42_Identifier) | wgm:internal_id (P96) |
| **Commons Category** | P373 | P87_is_identified_by (E39_Actor) | wgm:gnd (P102) / wgm:getty_ulan (P100) |

---

## Example: Max Ernst (Q154842)

**Name:** Max Ernst  
**Given Name:** Max  
**Family Name:** Ernst  
**Profession:** Painter, Sculptor, Artist (Surrealist movement)  
**Date of Birth:** 1891  
**Date of Death:** 1976  
**Nationality:** German (later naturalized French and American)  
**Reference:** [https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q154842](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q154842)

---

## Data Structure

### 1. Entity Type

| Field | Value |
|-------|-------|
| **German Label** | Entität |
| **English Label** | Entity |
| **Description** | The item itself is classified as a human |
| **Data Type** | Item |

#### Schema Mappings

| Standard | Property | Description |
|----------|----------|-------------|
| **Wikidata** | `P31:Q5` | Instance of human |
| **CIDOC CRM** | `E21_Person` | Defines the entity as a person |
| **WB4R** | `wgm:human (Q5)` / `wgm:instance_of (P1)` | Human classification in Wikibase4Research |

---

### 2. Given Name

| Field | Value |
|-------|-------|
| **German Label** | Vorname |
| **English Label** | Given name |
| **Wikidata Property** | P735 (given name) |
| **Data Type** | Item (reference to name item) |
| **URI** | https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Property:P735 |

#### Schema Mappings

| Standard | Property | Description |
|----------|----------|-------------|
| **Wikidata** | `P735` | Given name (recommended for exhibitions) |
| **CIDOC CRM** | `P1_is_identified_by (E82_Appellation)` | Identifies the person through naming |
| **WB4R** | `wgm:title (P4)` or `wgm:classified_as (P97)` | Name classification in WB4R |

---

### 3. Family Name

| Field | Value |
|-------|-------|
| **German Label** | Nachname |
| **English Label** | Family name |
| **Wikidata Property** | P734 (family name) |
| **Data Type** | Item (reference to name item) |
| **URI** | https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Property:P734 |

#### Schema Mappings

| Standard | Property | Description |
|----------|----------|-------------|
| **Wikidata** | `P734` | Family name (recommended for exhibitions) |
| **CIDOC CRM** | `P1_is_identified_by (E82_Appellation)` | Identifies the person through family name |
| **WB4R** | `wgm:title (P4)` or `wgm:classified_as (P97)` | Name classification in WB4R |

---

### 4. Profession / Occupation

| Field | Value |
|-------|-------|
| **German Label** | Beruf |
| **English Label** | Profession |
| **Wikidata Property** | P106 (occupation) |
| **Data Type** | Item (reference to occupation type) |
| **URI** | https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Property:P106 |

#### Schema Mappings

| Standard | Property | Description |
|----------|----------|-------------|
| **Wikidata** | `P106` | Occupation (use specific art/exhibition roles) |
| **CIDOC CRM** | `P2_has_type (E55_Type)` | Types applied to the person |
| **WB4R** | `wgm:classified_as (P97)` | Classification of professional role |

#### Examples
- Painter (Q3391743)
- Sculptor (Q729)
- Photographer (Q33231)
- Architect (Q42973)
- Musician (Q639669)

---

### 5. Date of Birth

| Field | Value |
|-------|-------|
| **German Label** | Geburtsdatum |
| **English Label** | Birth |
| **Wikidata Property** | P569 (date of birth) |
| **Data Type** | Date |
| **Format** | YYYY-MM-DD or YYYY |
| **URI** | https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Property:P569 |

#### Schema Mappings

| Standard | Property | Description |
|----------|----------|-------------|
| **Wikidata** | `P569` | Date of birth (format: YYYY-MM-DD or YYYY) |
| **CIDOC CRM** | `P82_at_some_time_within (E52_Time-Span)` | Time-span for birth event |
| **WB4R** | `wgm:date (P12)` via Birth Event or `wgm:start_date (P10)` | Event-based approach |

---

### 6. Date of Death

| Field | Value |
|-------|-------|
| **German Label** | Sterbedatum |
| **English Label** | Death |
| **Wikidata Property** | P570 (date of death) |
| **Data Type** | Date |
| **Format** | YYYY-MM-DD or YYYY |
| **URI** | https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Property:P570 |

#### Schema Mappings

| Standard | Property | Description |
|----------|----------|-------------|
| **Wikidata** | `P570` | Date of death (format: YYYY-MM-DD or YYYY) |
| **CIDOC CRM** | `P82_at_some_time_within (E52_Time-Span)` | Time-span for death event |
| **WB4R** | `wgm:date (P12)` via Death Event or `wgm:end_date (P11)` | Event-based approach |

---

### 7. Nationality / Citizenship

| Field | Value |
|-------|-------|
| **German Label** | Nationalität |
| **English Label** | Nationality |
| **Wikidata Property** | P27 (citizenship) |
| **Data Type** | Item (reference to country) |
| **URI** | https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Property:P27 |

#### Schema Mappings

| Standard | Property | Description |
|----------|----------|-------------|
| **Wikidata** | `P27` | Citizenship (link to country item) |
| **CIDOC CRM** | `P2_has_type (E55_Type_Nationality)` | Nationality as type |
| **WB4R** | `wgm:classified_as (P97)` with place reference | Classification with location context |

#### Examples
- Germany (Q183)
- France (Q142)
- Italy (Q38)
- United States (Q30)

---

### 8. Reference / Identifier

| Field | Value |
|-------|-------|
| **German Label** | Referenz |
| **English Label** | Reference |
| **Data Type** | URI / Identifier |
| **Format** | Wikidata Q-identifier or external authority file |

#### Schema Mappings

| Standard | Property | Description |
|----------|----------|-------------|
| **Wikidata** | Q-identifiers | Use Q-identifiers; also add P227 (GND) and P245 (Getty ULAN) |
| **CIDOC CRM** | `P1_is_identified_by (E42_Identifier)` | Unique identifier for the person |
| **WB4R** | `wgm:internal_id (P96)` or `wgm:gnd (P102)` / `wgm:getty_ulan (P100)` | Authority file references |

#### Authority File Properties
- **GND** (German National Library): `P227`
- **Getty ULAN** (Union List of Artist Names): `P245`
- **Europeana ID**: `P380`
- **ISNI**: `P213`
- **VIAF**: `P214`

---

### 9. Commons Category

| Field | Value |
|-------|-------|
| **German Label** | Commons category |
| **English Label** | Commons category |
| **Wikidata Property** | P373 (search name) |
| **Data Type** | String |
| **URI** | https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Property:P373 |

#### Schema Mappings

| Standard | Property | Description |
|----------|----------|-------------|
| **Wikidata** | `P373` | Commons category (for related media/images) |
| **CIDOC CRM** | Referenced via E78_Curated Holding | Media representation |
| **WB4R** | `wgm:external_link (P57)` | External resource linking |

#### Purpose
Link to Wikimedia Commons categories containing images, documents, or other media representations of the artist.

---

## Best Practices

### When Creating Artist Records:

1. **Always include:** Q-identifier (Wikidata link) for interoperability
2. **Use controlled vocabularies** for professions and nationalities
3. **Specify date precision:** Use YYYY if only year is known, YYYY-MM-DD if full date available
4. **Cross-reference authority files:** Include P227 (GND) and P245 (Getty ULAN) identifiers when available
5. **Link to Commons:** Provide P373 references to media collections
6. **Use consistent naming:** Follow "Given Name" + "Family Name" convention

### For Exhibition Context:

- Use **WikiProject Exhibitions** properties to link artists to exhibitions (P1690: related work)
- For performing artists: Reference **WikiProject Performing arts** guidelines
- For visual artists: Reference **WikiProject Visual arts** guidelines
- Ensure all date formats are ISO 8601 (YYYY-MM-DD) for data interoperability

---

## Related Standards & Resources

- [CIDOC CRM Official Documentation](http://www.cidoc-crm.org/)
- [Wikibase4Research Documentation](https://gitlab.com/nfdi4culture/wikibase4research)
- [Wikidata WikiProject Exhibitions](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Wikidata:WikiProject_Exhibitions)
- [Wikidata WikiProject Visual Arts](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Wikidata:WikiProject_Visual_arts)
- [Wikidata WikiProject Performing Arts](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Wikidata:WikiProject_Performing_arts)

---

## Contact & Contributions

For updates to this data model or suggestions for improvement, please contact the NFDI4Culture Linked Open Exhibition project team or contribute via [GitHub](https://github.com/NFDI4Culture/linked-open-exhibition).

---

## Attribution

This data model documentation was created with assistance from **GitHub Copilot** (powered by Claude Haiku 4.5). The model was aligned against sector standards including CIDOC CRM v7.1.3, Wikibase4Research, and Wikidata WikiProject Exhibitions guidelines through AI-assisted analysis and formatting.