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Gurlitt: Status Report
Degenerate art: confiscated and sold...
For the first time in decades, hundreds of works of art, hoarded by a German art dealer, are being displayed in Bern. The exhibition Gurlitt Status Report “Degenerate Art” - Confiscated and Sold at the Kuntsmuseum is certainly important, however, much of its importance comes from the story surrounding the exhibition rather than the art itself. To view this exhibition a little homework and background is worthwhile.
In 2010, while on a train from Zurich to Munich Cornelius Gurlitt, the son of the deceased German art dealer Hildebrand Gurlitt , was searched by customs officials and after being found to be carrying a very large amount of cash became the subject of a tax evasion inquiry in Germany. In 2012, as part of this inquiry, his Munich apartment and Salzburg home were searched and over 1500 artworks were discovered. Many of these works were believed to be Nazi plunder and a task force was established to determine the provenance of each piece. While this investigation was ongoing Cornelius died in 2014 and, as stated in the guide, to its complete surprise the Kuntsmuseum was named as his sole heir. It is at pains to point out that only after seven months of consideration did it decide to accept the legacy.
Today, it is exhibiting half the legacy with the other half being shown in parallel at the Bundeskunsthalle in Bonn. One of the purported aims of these exhibitions is to give the heirs of the original owners an opportunity to reclaim art wrongly seized by the Nazis or sold under unlawful conditions.
All of this background is necessary as sadly most of the works in the Bern exhibition are not eligible for restitution. In 1937, the Nazi regime staged the defamatory exhibition “Degenerate Art” in Munich that vilified works of art by artists such as Franz Marc, Otto Dicks and Paul Klee. The works were exhibited with disparaging comments such as “sick” and Un-Germanic” and had been confiscated from German museums and institutions. This campaign was legitimized by the passage of a law in 1938. After the end of World War Two, the Allies decided that this law would not be repealed and so any such confiscations were legal. Unless it can be proved that a work was seized directly as a result of the persecution of the owner, it seems unlikely that the heirs of the original owners can claim the works.
Switzerland had a central and morally dubious role in this episode as many of these works were sent to Switzerland by the Nazis to be sold in Lucerne to raise hard currency for the Nazi regime. Remarkably Cornelius’s father, despite having been persecuted as the grandchild of a Jew and having championed and promoted the works of many of the condemned artists, was one of only four dealers personally approved to act as the selling agent of the Nazis. It is recognized that many of these works were sold at knock-down prices. Gurlitt himself purchased many works, in addition to many works that were looted by the Nazis in France; after the war he was interrogated, but escaped prosecution and all the works were returned to him. Today, it is clear he lied about important details.
Now on to the art - which if your taste runs to Modern Art is a gem - the exhibition starts with intensely sad and moving drawings by the artist and sculptor Kathe Kollwitz who is best known for her heartbreaking sculpture of a mother holding her dead son “Pieta” which she made after the death of her own son. There are colourful nudes by Ernest Kirchner that contrast with his dark portraits that resemble wood cuts showing grim and terrified faces. He was so scared of the Nazis after they seized his art that he committed suicide in 1938. Bravely Emil Nolde protested against the defamation of his work and tried to emphasize its Germanness and was as a result expelled from his job and lived in isolation for the rest of his life. His works on display depict lewd dancing women and many figures with monstrous faces.
Even dead artists could not escape the Nazis. Franz Marc who was killed in action in 1916 had been celebrated until the 1930s however even his works were confiscated and his most famous painting “The Tower of Blue Horses” was displayed in the Nazi exhibition. The works displayed are colourful and playful with lots of blues and greys and stand out amongst the mostly bleak surrounding works. Prominently displayed nearby are two small Paul Klee paintings and one painting by Kandinksy that is a jumble of geometric 3-D shapes set against a dark background. Otto Dix who was one of the first artists to be dismissed from his job is represented with many haunting images of terror and death together with deeply unflattering portraits including a bleak self-portrait. There are several works by George Grosz and Max Beckman including grotesque black and white drawings that seem to be mocking cartoons.
It is hard to walk through this exhibition without thinking about the injustice and fear that many of these artists suffered. It is impossible not to think of the owners of some of these artworks and what they endured and to wonder why, out of 1500 artworks, only a handful have been restored to the heirs of the original owners. I also wondered if Switzerland has really examined its role in this dreadful episode? And finally, there is the enigma of Cornelius Gurlitt who stored most of this art in an unimpressive steel filing cabinet that is on display in the exhibition with no explanation.
Be warned the exhibition is in German although a dense booklet is available in several languages including English.
Helen Higgins, 23rd November 2017
Further information
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Gurlitt Status Report “Degenerate Art “- Confiscated and Sold
Kuntsmuseum Bern, 2nd November 2017 until 4th March 2018
Tuesday: 10am to 9pm; Wednesday to Sunday: 10am to 5pm;
closed on Mondays.
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Admission Chf 10.- ; reduced price: Chf 7.-