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I would have thought these inheritance battles would have mostly been resolved, especially the Nazi ones, and petered out by now, but apparently not.
Philly Art Museum faces ownership challenge over classic 20th-century work of modernism
A masterpiece of modernist art that has been in the collection of the Philadelphia Museum of Art for almost 70 years has been characterized as “Nazi-looted art” by representatives of the artist’s heirs who plan to challenge museum ownership in court https://www.msn.com/en-us/travel/art...cid=uxbndlbing
Mondrian at the Philadelphia Museum of Art is Nazi loot, heirs allege
In 1937 the work, which had belonged to art historian Sophie Küppers, was seized by Nazi authorities and eventually sold to New York collector https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2021...i-loot-lawsuit
Just how hard would these heirs be fighting if that particular piece never basked in reflected glory from its famous signature? I doubt very much all they want is to hang it on a living room wall.
Just how hard would these heirs be fighting if that particular piece never basked in reflected glory from its famous signature? I doubt very much all they want is to hang it on a living room wall.
If you had a work of art taken from you wouldn't you want it back? And if you weren't alive wouldn't you want your children to have it back? It belongs to the rightful owners, whether they keep it or sell it. I don't understand the comment that implies the rightful owners are at fault here.
If you had a work of art taken from you wouldn't you want it back? And if you weren't alive wouldn't you want your children to have it back? It belongs to the rightful owners, whether they keep it or sell it. I don't understand the comment that implies the rightful owners are at fault here.
But this is where the story gets murky. Depending on which account you believe, Mondrian's own designated heir was aware of the painting's whereabouts for decades and never claimed it as his property. Apparently he had no problem with it remaining in the museum's collection. We don't know whether he even considered it rightfully his to claim or if he did, whether he ever clarified the piece's fate with the museum (on permanent loan, transferred upon his death by deed of gift, etc). How this piece of property was dealt with in his will wasn't stated. Sounds as if no one cared enough about it. We can't speculate whether it was specifically bequeathed to anyone else including the heirs now demanding it back. I was suggesting that no one would be pursuing it now unless they hoped for a windfall. They probably don't care anything about the work itself, just the potential payoff. Maybe the best place for it is to remain part of an appreciative museum collection, not in the hands of mercenary relatives or some collector who will lock it away in some private vault.
Last edited by Parnassia; 12-27-2021 at 01:02 PM..
Just how hard would these heirs be fighting if that particular piece never basked in reflected glory from its famous signature? I doubt very much all they want is to hang it on a living room wall.
Don't bet on that!
Mondrian didn't get to be internationally famous because his art wasn't good.
Don't bet on that!
Mondrian didn't get to be internationally famous because his art wasn't good.
No argument here. I like some Mondrians but this particular piece doesn't do much for me. Still, context, in terms of a lifelong body of work and the time within which it was created, does matter.
This brought to mind a museum trip with my godmother to see a famous touring Rembrandt. We walked around the rest of the museum for several hours. One gallery contained several Picasso etchings and studies. I'll never forget standing in front of a pencil sketch of something or other...don't remember. My godmother, whose opinions were often quite enjoyable, gazed at it a while, then whispered: "I know I'm probably being sacrilegious but I just don't think that has merit."
Last edited by Parnassia; 01-03-2022 at 03:35 PM..
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Just how hard would these heirs be fighting if that particular piece never basked in reflected glory from its famous signature? I doubt very much all they want is to hang it on a living room wall.
