In the art world, the issue of displaying valuable works from collections that were amassed during World War II has always proved a thorny problem. The suspicions that naturally arise about the true origin of the art creates an ethical dilemma over displaying the works even when there are no active disputes over ownership. Recently, The Museum of Fine Arts in Bern, Switzerland, was faced with this problem after a bequest for a massive collection, that included works from some of the best known painters in Europe, but came from the son of a well known dealer who was associated with the Nazi regime. Faced with the dilemma of what to do, the museum passed along many of the items to a special commission in Germany for investigation which found very few of the works were traceable to forced sells or confiscation during the war. However, there is one challenge to museum’s ownership, a cousin of the dealer that made the bequest is challenging the will in court on the bases of mental capacity. But at least that is a legal challenge that does not has it’s origins in the most destructive conflict in human history.
See, Swiss, German museums to show Nazi-era art hoard found in Cornelius Gurlitt’s apartment, Art Daily, April 5, 2016.
Special thanks to Brian Cohan (Attorney at Law, Law Offices of Brian J. Cohan, P.C.) for bringing this article to my attention.
