German recluse Cornelius Gurlitt leaves Nazi-era art hoard to Museum of Fine Arts in Bern 

Cornelius Gurlitt's lawyer told the Museum of Fine Arts in Bern that it was the sole heir of the German's spectacular collection. 

GENEVA (AFP).- A Swiss museum said it was shocked to learn Wednesday the son of a Nazi-era art dealer had left it a disputed hoard of priceless paintings -- some thought to have been plundered from Jews. One day after the death of Cornelius Gurlitt aged 81, his lawyer told the Museum of Fine Arts in the western Swiss city of Bern that it was the sole heir of the German's spectacular collection. The institution said in a statement that it was stunned by the "happy surprise" but would now wrestle with the huge legal and historical burden accompanying the artworks. "Despite speculation in the media that Mr Gurlitt had bequeathed his collection to an art institution outside Germany, the news came like a bolt from the blue, since at no time has Mr Gurlitt had any connection with Kunstmuseum Bern," it said. While expressing "gratitude", the museum acknowledged that the inheritance also handed it "a considerable responsibility", and raised "sensitive questions, especially of a legal and ethical nature." It said it would now review the documentation provided to it and consult with the "appropriate authorities" to decide how to proceed. The Museum of Fine Arts in Bern already boasts a valuable collection of modern masters including works by Picasso and Paul Klee. But the inheritance will dramatically expand the breadth and quality of its holdings. Love of his life Gurlitt, who died Tuesday following heart surgery, had hidden a remarkable trove of 1,280 artworks including long-lost masterpieces by Picasso, Matisse and Chagall in his flat in the southern German city of Munich for decades. The eccentric recluse never married and had no children, calling his art the love of his life. 

The works, whose value has been estimated at hundreds of millions of dollars, were seized in February 2012 when they were discovered by chance in the course of a small-scale tax evasion investigation. Gurlitt last month struck an accord with the German government to permit research to track down the rightful owners of pieces, including Jews whose property was stolen or extorted under the Third Reich. Independent experts estimate that around 450 of the works are so-called Nazi-looted art. 

The Bavarian state justice ministry told AFP that this review would continue and the commitment to restitution would remain binding for Gurlitt's heir. More than 200 other paintings, sketches and sculptures were discovered in February this year in a separate home of Gurlitt's in Salzburg, Austria including works by Monet, Manet, Cezanne and Gauguin. 

They are not covered by the German accord and Gurlitt's spokesman Stephan Holzinger said it was not immediately clear whether they had also been bequeathed to the Bern museum. Gurlitt's art dealer father Hildebrand acquired most of the paintings in the 1930s and 1940s, when he was tasked by the Nazis with selling works taken from Jewish families and avant-garde art seized from German museums that the Hitler regime deemed "degenerate". Holzinger told AFP that he did not want to "speculate" on why his client had decided to leave the collection to the museum. However media reports said Gurlitt had been angered that the German authorities had seized his collection over a small tax claim and then dragged their feet with the investigation. Holzinger said that a Munich court would still have to rule on whether the will was valid. "If it is found that the Bern museum is the rightful heir, and the museum accepts this inheritance -- a key condition -- then the museum will have to contend from that moment with all legal issues including the question of restitution of looted art," he said. 

The Bavarian culture ministry said it would also commission a mandatory review of whether any of the works were on the list of Germany's national heritage. A spokesman said the ministry assumed few works if any in the collection would fall under this category and lead it to stake a claim. Meanwhile prosecutors in Munich ordered an autopsy for Gurlitt to determine his definitive cause of death. 

More Information: http://artdaily.com/news/69938/German-recluse-Cornelius-Gurlitt-leaves-Nazi-era-art-hoard-to-Museum-of-Fine-Arts-in-Bern#.U2vbyfl_uSo[/url]

Copyright © artdaily.org

++++++

Heir to Nazi-era art hoard Cornelius Gurlitt dies in his apartment in Schwabing at age 81 

The house of German Cornelius Gurlitt is seen in Salzburg, on November 18, 2013. Cornelius Gurlitt, a German recluse who hid hundreds of paintings believed looted by the Nazis in his Munich flat, died today. 

BERLIN (AFP).- The reclusive German son of a Nazi-era art dealer who hoarded hundreds of priceless paintings in his Munich flat for decades including works plundered from Jews died Tuesday aged 81. Cornelius Gurlitt died "in his apartment in Schwabing, in the presence of a doctor," his spokesman Stephan Holzinger said in a statement, referring to an upscale district of Munich. Holzinger said Gurlitt had recently undergone serious heart surgery and after spending a week in hospital, asked to return to his home where he had lived among long-lost masterpieces by Picasso, Matisse and Chagall until the collection came to the attention of the authorities two years ago. Gurlitt had last month struck an accord with the German government to help track down the rightful owners of pieces in his trove of 1,280 artworks, including Jews whose property was stolen or extorted under the Third Reich. The works, whose value has been estimated at hundreds of millions of dollars, were seized in February 2012 when they were discovered by chance in the course of a small-scale tax evasion investigation. More than 200 paintings, sketches and sculptures discovered in a separate home of Gurlitt's in Salzburg, Austria including works by Monet, Manet, Cezanne and Gauguin are not covered by the German agreement and it was not immediately clear who would now claim them. Gurlitt's father Hildebrand acquired most of the paintings in the 1930s and 1940s, when he worked as an art dealer tasked by the Nazis with selling works taken from Jewish families and avant-garde art seized from German museums that the Hitler regime deemed "degenerate". An eccentric villain The case only came to public attention when Focus news weekly published an article last year, sparking fierce international criticism that German authorities kept the case under wraps for so long. Under the April accord, a government-appointed international task force of art experts will have one year to investigate the provenance of all the works in Gurlitt's Munich collection. Artworks subject to ownership claims after that deadline will be held by a trust until the cases are resolved. Holzinger said it was unclear whether Gurlitt had left a valid will but a spokeswoman for the Bavarian justice ministry told AFP the April agreement would also apply to any heirs. "The research on the paintings will go forward without question," the state's justice minister, Winfried Bausback, added in a statement. A lawyer representing descendants of prominent Paris art collector Paul Rosenberg who have staked a claim to a Matisse portrait in Gurlitt's collection told AFP there were now a number of unresolved issues. "We obviously will now have to wait for the estate process in Germany to unfold," the attorney, Christopher Marinello, said. Gurlitt's public image evolved dramatically in the months since his case came to light. He was initially cast in the German media as an eccentric villain, and told Der Spiegel magazine in a notorious interview last November that he would never give up his collection without a fight. "I will not give anything back voluntarily," he said. "No, no, no." Gurlitt never married or had children, declaring his art collection to be "the love of his life". But with the help of a revolving cast of lawyers and advisors, Gurlitt eventually softened his stance and began cooperating with the German government to reach an agreement that was also welcomed by Jewish groups. German Culture Minister Monika Gruetters praised Gurlitt's eventual decision to own up to the historical burden of his spectacular hoard. "It will remain a credit to Cornelius Gurlitt that he, as a private individual, set an example in the search for fair and just solutions with his commitment to moral responsibility," she said. "He rightly received recognition and respect for this step." Gurlitt may have another important legacy on the German lawbooks. In the wake of his case, deputies initiated a measure to ditch a 30-year statute of limitations that has provided cover for people in possession of contested artworks. Gurlitt's father had played a key role in the Nazis' systematic looting of major art collections to raise hard currency and to handpick works for a "Fuehrer Museum" for Adolf Hitler in the Austrian city of Linz that was never built. 

More Information: http://artdaily.com/news/69911/Heir-to-Nazi-era-art-hoard-Cornelius-Gurlitt-dies-in-his-apartment-in-Schwabing-at-age-81#.U2veyPl_uSo[/url]

Copyright © artdaily.org