Erben fordern einvernehmliche Rückgabe von zwölf Schiele-Werken durch die Republik Österreich
Bei einer Versteigerung durch das renommierte Auktionshaus Christie’s in London erzielte gestern, 5. März 2025, Egon Schieles Aquarell „Boy in a Sailor Suit“ (1914) einen Erlös von € 3,240 000,-. Das Werk stammt aus der Sammlung des Wiener Kabarettisten Fritz Grünbaum (1880–1941), der sich offen gegen das NS-Regime stellte und 1941 in einem Konzentrationslager ermordet wurde.
PResseaussendung 5-3Heirs demand the consensual return of twelve Schiele works by the Republic of Austria
At an auction held by the renowned auction house Christie’s in London yesterday, March 5, 2025, Egon Schiele’s watercolor “Boy in a Sailor Suit” (1914) fetched € 3,240 000,-. The work comes from the collection of the Viennese cabaret artist Fritz Grünbaum (1880-1941), who openly opposed the Nazi regime and was murdered in a concentration camp in 1941.
PResseaussendung_5.3._eChristie’s, which values the work at more than $1 million, said the proceeds from any sale would be shared with the heirs of an art collector killed in a concentration camp.
An Article by By Catherine Hickley, New York Times
20250220 - NYT - Boy in a Sailor Suit
The heirs of collector Fritz Grünbaum have won back other Schieles from American Museums
An article by Brian Boucher, Artnet
An Egon Schiele drawing that was stolen by the Nazis from Austrian Jewish cabaret performer Fritz Grünbaum will soon come to auction at Christie’s London, after the owner’s heirs successfully lobbied for the work’s return.
20250221 - ArtnetDoes the 1907 Hague Convention on land warfare require signatory countries to open courts to claims for restitution of nazi-looted art?
A Meditation on Cassirer v. Thyssen-Bornemisza Foundation and Why a european directive could fix this horrible mess.
Written by Raymond J. Dowd for KUR-Kunst und Recht, Volume 26 (2024), Issue 5-6
Lincoln Napoleon and Hitler Walk Into A BarThe debate over the restitution of Nazi-looted art is taking a concerning turn. A group of lawyers, historians, and descendants of Nazi victims has addressed an open letter to Chancellor Olaf Scholz, drawing attention to looming setbacks in restitution law. The letter warns against the planned abolition of the Advisory Commission for Nazi-Looted Art – an institution that has been advocating for justice in handling Nazi-looted art for over 20 years.
In its place, a new arbitration court is set to be introduced, which, according to the signatories, would significantly restrict the rights of victims. Art dealers and those who were forced to sell cultural assets under persecution would be particularly affected. The signatories criticize that these changes have been decided without public debate or parliamentary hearings.
The open letter calls for halting the initiative until a comprehensive hearing is held in the Bundestag. The goal is to preserve restitution rights and amplify the voices of victims.
Find the english translation of the letter below the original text.
202501006OffenerBriefResitution
The fight is over an Egon Schiele drawing held by the Art Institute of Chicago that the Manhattan district attorney’s office seized as Nazi loot. But it has wider implications. (New York Times)
20241008_NYTimes_The Role of New York’s Lauded Looted Art Unit Is Challenged in CourtThis video was done by James Payne, a curator, gallerist, and a passionate art lover. Check out his Youtube-channel
He writes about this film:
“This film looks at how stolen art “disappears” in a complicated practise designed to obscure facts and create wealth for the art market. How the true owners of these artworks, the descendants of Holocaust victims, are still fighting a system that stops at nothing to keep secrets and protect its wealthy clientele. There are works in private collections and established museums right now, which were stolen by the Nazis.
I think, it’s about time they were returned.”
CREDITS
Opening Animation and Title Sequence by Brian Adsit (instagram https://instagram.com/brian_vfx?utm_m… and Behance www.behance.com/badsit88)
Recording by Robert Lewis
Research Assistant: Jake Phillips
VIDEOS
All the videos, songs, images, and graphics used in the video belong to their respective owners and I or this channel do not claim any right over them.
MUSIC
Fritz Grünbaum singing “Made in Germany”
FILMS
The Monuments Men – 2014 – ©20th Century Studios
Triumph of the Will – 1935 – ©UFA GmbH
BOOKS
Schiele by Reinhard Steiner
Egon Schiele: Landscapes by Rudolf Leopold
Hitler’s Art Thief by Susan Ronald
Law360, New York (August 29, 2024, 6:47 PM EDT) — A prosecutor in the Manhattan DistrictAttorney’s Office argued in court Thursday that the Art Institute of Chicago is ignoring the horrors of the Nazi regime as it “desperately” attempts to hold onto a Holocaust victim’s stolen Egon Schiele drawing.
Law360, New York (29. August 2024, 18:47 Uhr EDT) – Ein Staatsanwalt der Staatsanwaltschaft von Manhattan argumentierte am Donnerstag vor Gericht, dass das Art Institute of Chicago die Schrecken des Nazi-Regimes ignoriert, während es „verzweifelt“ versucht, die gestohlene Egon-Schiele-Zeichnung eines Holocaust-Opfers zu behalten.
20240831- Law360 - Chicago Museum Clinging To Nazi-Looted Art, NY Court Told
20240831- Law360 - Chicago Museum Clinging To Nazi-Looted Art, NY Court Told_de
Julius Klausner and Robert Graetz, German Jewish industrialists, defied the odds to build their economic empires from scratch. In 2016, a letter listing looted artworks from WWII brings their two grandchildren on a poignant journey to reclaim their lost art. Their lawyer, Fritz Enderlein, is an 88-year-old German lawyer who fought in the Wehrmacht and now works tirelessly to restore looted works of art to their rightful owners, decades after they were taken. Together, they navigate a complex web of bureaucracy, concealment, and denial as they delve deeper into the world of art.