Escape art In-depth research planned for Zurich's Bührle collection
After an investigation showed that the Bührle Foundation's research into refugee art is not sufficient, further clarifications are now to be carried out. However, initial discussions will not take place until after the summer break.
10.07.2024, 10:52
SDA
The Kunstgesellschaft Zürich, the City of Zurich and the Canton of Zurich jointly announced on Wednesday that it is "appropriate" to find a good solution in connection with the Bührle Foundation. The first further talks will take place after the summer break. The Zurich Art Society intends to inform the public again as soon as results are available.
Previous research "not sufficient"
At the end of June, historian Raphael Gross judged the provenance research carried out by the Bührle Foundation to date to be "insufficient". Further clarification is needed on the provenance of the paintings. Many of the works hanging in the Kunsthaus collection had Jewish owners during the Second World War.
"Raphael Gross's report is a clear mandate: we must now take responsibility and find ways to get the necessary research efforts underway quickly," said Justice Director Jacqueline Fehr (SP) in the press release.
Five works taken down
Two weeks before the presentation of the historians' report, the Bührle Collection had already had five works removed. It had the pictures, which probably fall under the category of escape art, taken down. Since then, there has been a gap on these walls.
The foundation now wants to find a fair solution with the descendants, i.e. either pay compensation or return the pictures. The paintings in question are "Portrait du Sculpteur Louis-Joseph" by Gustave Courbet and "Jardin de Monet à Giverny" by Claude Monet from the Ullstein Collection.
Two further paintings are from the Feilchenfeldt Collection: "Georges-Henri Manuel" by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and "The Old Tower" by Vincent van Gogh. The fifth picture is "La route montante" by Paul Gauguin from the Semmel Collection.
