To mark the fifth anniversary of the Max Stern Art Restitution Project, the three university beneficiaries of the Estate of Max Stern (Concordia University, McGill University of Montreal, Hebrew University of Jerusalem) hosted a return ceremony for the seven Old Master and Nineteenth Century paintings thus far recovered.
The unveiling took place on Wednesday, May 20, 2009, at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (Michal and Renata Hornstein Pavilion, 1379 Sherbrooke Street West).
Below are photos from the event and a video with Art History Professor Catherine MacKenzie speaking about the journey of the Girl from the Sabine Mountains canvas by Franz-Xaver Winterhalter:
The centrepiece of the event was the unveiling of Girl from the Sabine Mountains by Franz-Xaver Winterhalter (1805-1873) — the most famous European court painter of his day.
Catherine MacKenzie, professor in the Department of Art History at Concordia University, talks about the journey of the Winterhalter painting:
The canvas, illegally transported in 2005 from the United States to Germany during good faith negotiations with Baroness Von Morsey Pickard, finally returns to the universities after a precedent-setting battle for its ownership waged and won in the American federal courts.
Following more than seventy years’ possession by the family of a Nazi stormtrooper official, the courts affirmed that its forced sale was tantamount to theft and that a thief cannot pass good title.
This historic decision, by extension, applies to hundreds of other works that Max Stern lost from his Düsseldorf family gallery and collection.
Indeed, the six month period since the rendering of the Winterhalter judgment has seen the return of three important Dutch and Italian Old Master paintings by European collectors as well as British and American dealers. The contributions of the American legal team led by Thomas Kline of Andrews Kurth LLP as well as the U.S Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security cannot be understated.
Adding to the New York State Banking Department’s Holocaust Claims Processing Office — the first organization to formally acknowledge the Estate’s rights to pursue restitution — the Stern Project now boasts an international network of collaborators ranging from government agencies, law enforcement, database services, auction houses, dealers, collectors, private foundations, scholars, archivists, conservators and curators.
“When the restitution project was formally initiated in 2004, the estate executors and universities knew very well that this initiative would not be without its hurdles, but agreed that the cause was worth pursuing as long as necessary out of respect for our tremendous benefactor and for the justifiable imperatives”, said Clarence Epstein, Concordia’s Director of Special Projects and Cultural Affairs who leads the Stern Project. “Now, at the five-year mark of a global effort garnering unparalleled success, it’s time to take stock of what’s possible when committed professionals, institutions and governments work together.”
Benefitting universities in Canada and Israel it was always one of the mainstays of the Stern Project to educate the public and raise awareness of the heinous acts perpetrated on humankind by the Nazi government. To this end, the exhibition. Auktion 392: Reclaiming the Galerie Stern, Dusseldorf, continues its world tour with European venues slated for the coming year.
Read more in the Concordia Journal article, Stern paintings unveiled at MMFA.
The event was also covered in both the local and national press:
- CTV: Long-awaited art show in Montreal (with video)
- CBC: Nazi victim’s art holdings unveiled at Montreal museum
- Radio-Canada: Exposition à Montréal
- La Press: Des peintures «volées» par les nazis au Musée des beaux-arts
- Le Devoir: En photo - Le juste retour
Posted on May 21, 2009
