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Phoenix Ancient Art has been in the news quite a bit lately, and art crime experts are advising museums to verify their collections.
Showing posts with label art trafficking. Show all posts
Showing posts with label art trafficking. Show all posts
May 26, 2024
Phoenix Ancient Art: selected provenances
Mar 5, 2021
Holocaust-related claims for art: tactics observed
Reactions to claims for Nazi-looted art, forced sales and duress sales vary.
Some museums or private collectors, when they learn that a prized artwork belonged to an art collector who was plundered by the Nazis, immediately set out to research the history and return the artwork to the family.
Others fight with every weapon in their arsenal, not hesitating to make up perfectly false stories to explain how the artwork landed in their collection or even to sue the claimants.
Question: can one identify the different responses and classify each response accordingly?
This post is a first attempt to list a few of the tactics observed in the past:
TACTICS OBSERVED IN NAZI ERA ART RESTITUTION CASES
- Deny that the artwork in the defendant's collection is the same as the artwork claimed
- Deny the claimant's ancestor owned the artwork
- Deny the context of the Holocaust by portraying events as a normal commercial transaction
- Deny or discount physical evidence of ripped labels, resized or otherwise distorted canvases
- Conceal evidence that the defendant possesses
- Misrepresent and misinterpret evidence
- Use false evidence previously inserted by bad actors, including Nazis and known looted art dealers among others
- Invent stories based on speculation creating alternative "facts"
- Use influence to plant and spread false information, including creating publications to spread false story
- On the legal front, mobilise any and all tactics to stop case while publicly proclaiming adherence to Washington Principles.
- In case of settlement, misrepresent the history of the case, and prevent claimants from revealing an accurate account with non-disclosure clauses
This list is just a start. It will be an interesting exercise to attach the tactic to the case, based on the published public record.
May 9, 2020
The Holocaust and the Art Market: Alfred Daber
What does it mean to find the name of Alfred Daber or of Galerie Daber in a provenance?
DABER is a name that can be found in the provenances of numerous artworks. However Alfred Daber, an ALIU Red Flag Name, was known to have trafficked in looted art during the Nazi era.
In this post, we gather information publicly available online in digital form about Alfred Daber. 1) Where - in which museums - does the name Daber appear in provenances? 2) What other names appear together with Daber? 3) What mentions of Daber can be found in databases such as France's Rose Valland MNR and the Getty Provenance Index and its Knoedler file? 4) What Fold3 archival documents mention Daber? and 5) What books or catalogs did Daber author or edit?
In short, what kind of picture emerges of the fates of artworks that, at one time or another, passed through Alfred Daber's hands?
Obviously, the presence of Daber's name in a provenance does not mean that the artwork was ill-gotten. However it is a Red Flag that should not be ignored. Further research is clearly required to account for 1933-1945 provenance gaps and to verify, down to the original sources, the narratives that are provided.
* Art Looting Investigation Unit Red Flag Name
"Le tableau est acheté 11 250 RM chez Daber, Paris, en 1941 par M. Gutbier"
"Acheté 20 000 RM chez Daber, Paris, en 1941 par Ludwig Gutbier"
"Émile Staub, à Männedorf, en Suisse (où il est encore en 1931) ; on le voit ensuite chez G. Bernheim, Paris (1932) ; chez Carlo Frua de Angeli, à Milan ; chez G. Tanner, à Zurich ; il est exposé en 1937 dans la galerie Alfred Daber, Paris ; enfin il est acheté peu avant la guerre par Georges Renand (cat. Exposition d'Amsterdam en 1938). Le tableau est acheté à Georges Renand à Paris 50 000 RM par M. Wüster (1) pour Joachim von Ribbentrop en 1941"
The Getty Selected Dealer Archives & Locations lists Daber with Blondeau Gallery.
The Getty Provenance Index lists 32 artworks with Daber as the seller, the earliest transaction dates to 1954.
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| https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1980.265 |
DABER is a name that can be found in the provenances of numerous artworks. However Alfred Daber, an ALIU Red Flag Name, was known to have trafficked in looted art during the Nazi era.
In this post, we gather information publicly available online in digital form about Alfred Daber. 1) Where - in which museums - does the name Daber appear in provenances? 2) What other names appear together with Daber? 3) What mentions of Daber can be found in databases such as France's Rose Valland MNR and the Getty Provenance Index and its Knoedler file? 4) What Fold3 archival documents mention Daber? and 5) What books or catalogs did Daber author or edit?
In short, what kind of picture emerges of the fates of artworks that, at one time or another, passed through Alfred Daber's hands?
Obviously, the presence of Daber's name in a provenance does not mean that the artwork was ill-gotten. However it is a Red Flag that should not be ignored. Further research is clearly required to account for 1933-1945 provenance gaps and to verify, down to the original sources, the narratives that are provided.
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| https://www.fold3.com/image/270257378 |
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1) Museums holding artworks that mention the name Daber in the provenance (not exhaustive):
- National Gallery of Art in Washington DC (four artworks source: Spoliation Reports))
- Bristol Museums & Art Gallery (five artworks source: Spoliation Reports))
- Glasgow Museums (source: Spoliation Reports)
- National Galleries of Scotland (source: Spoliation Reports)
- National Gallery in London (five artworks source: Spoliation Reports)
- Cleveland Museum of Art (source: CMA)
- Milwaukee Art Museum (source: Knoedler)
- Norton Simon Museum (source: Knoedler)
- Art Institute of Chicago (source: AIC)
- Yale University Art Gallery (source: Yale website)
- Metropolitan Museum of Art (source:metmuseum.org)
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| https://artgallery.yale.edu/collections/objects/25543 |
2) Associated Names
Names that appear in provenances together with Daber (not exhaustive)
- César de Haucke*
- Raphael Gérard*
- George Petit*
- Jacques Dubourg*
- E.V. Thaw
- Stephen Hahn
- Fritz Nathan*
- Sam Salz
- Arthur Tooth and Sons
- Knoedler*
- Michel Fert
- Ludwig Gutbier
- G. Tanner*
- Georges Renand*
- Daber Gallery
- Blondeau Gallery
* Art Looting Investigation Unit Red Flag Name
3) Daber in France MNR
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| Looted paintings in France's MNR that mention Daber |
"Le tableau est acheté 11 250 RM chez Daber, Paris, en 1941 par M. Gutbier"
"Acheté 20 000 RM chez Daber, Paris, en 1941 par Ludwig Gutbier"
"Émile Staub, à Männedorf, en Suisse (où il est encore en 1931) ; on le voit ensuite chez G. Bernheim, Paris (1932) ; chez Carlo Frua de Angeli, à Milan ; chez G. Tanner, à Zurich ; il est exposé en 1937 dans la galerie Alfred Daber, Paris ; enfin il est acheté peu avant la guerre par Georges Renand (cat. Exposition d'Amsterdam en 1938). Le tableau est acheté à Georges Renand à Paris 50 000 RM par M. Wüster (1) pour Joachim von Ribbentrop en 1941"
The Getty Selected Dealer Archives & Locations lists Daber with Blondeau Gallery.
The Getty Provenance Index lists 32 artworks with Daber as the seller, the earliest transaction dates to 1954.
BONINGTON, RICHARD PARKES
BONNARD, PIERRE
BOUDIN, EUGÈNE LOUIS
BRIANCHON, MAURICE
CARRIÈRE, EUGÈNE
COROT, JEAN BAPTISTE CAMILLE
COURBET, GUSTAVE
DAUMIER, HONORÉ VICTORIN
DELACROIX, EUGÈNE
FANTIN-LATOUR, HENRI
GÉRICAULT, JEAN LOUIS ANDRÉ THÉODORE
GONZALÈS, EVA
GUIGOU, PAUL CAMILLE
MONET, CLAUDE
RENOIR, PIERRE AUGUSTE
BONNARD, PIERRE
BOUDIN, EUGÈNE LOUIS
BRIANCHON, MAURICE
CARRIÈRE, EUGÈNE
COROT, JEAN BAPTISTE CAMILLE
COURBET, GUSTAVE
DAUMIER, HONORÉ VICTORIN
DELACROIX, EUGÈNE
FANTIN-LATOUR, HENRI
GÉRICAULT, JEAN LOUIS ANDRÉ THÉODORE
GONZALÈS, EVA
GUIGOU, PAUL CAMILLE
MONET, CLAUDE
RENOIR, PIERRE AUGUSTE
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 69, Stock No. A7216
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 187, Stock No. A6507
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 66, Stock No. A7173
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 200, Stock No. A6709
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 219, Stock No. A9243
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 137, Stock No. A5825
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 154, Stock No. A6065
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 154, Stock No. A6066
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 183, Stock No. A6438
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 183, Stock No. A6439
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 183, Stock No. A6440
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 183, Stock No. A6441
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 206, Stock No. A9095
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 107, Stock No. A5375
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 154,
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 187, Stock No. A6507
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 66, Stock No. A7173
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 200, Stock No. A6709
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 219, Stock No. A9243
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 137, Stock No. A5825
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 154, Stock No. A6065
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 154, Stock No. A6066
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 183, Stock No. A6438
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 183, Stock No. A6439
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 183, Stock No. A6440
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 183, Stock No. A6441
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 206, Stock No. A9095
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 107, Stock No. A5375
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 154,
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 143, Stock No. A8314
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 171, Stock No. A8691
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 84, Stock No. A7405
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 180, Stock No. A8791
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 82, Stock No. A7384
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 148, Stock No. A8408
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 175, Stock No. A6334
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 73, Stock No. A7269
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 73, Stock No. A7270
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 73, Stock No. A7271
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 137, Stock No. A5833
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 154, Stock No. A6064
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 40, Stock No. A6064
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 174, Stock No. A8723
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 186, Stock No. A6492
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 173, Stock No. A8720
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 171, Stock No. A8691
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 84, Stock No. A7405
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 180, Stock No. A8791
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 82, Stock No. A7384
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 148, Stock No. A8408
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 175, Stock No. A6334
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 73, Stock No. A7269
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 73, Stock No. A7270
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 73, Stock No. A7271
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 137, Stock No. A5833
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 154, Stock No. A6064
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 40, Stock No. A6064
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 174, Stock No. A8723
Knoedler Stock Book 10, Page 186, Stock No. A6492
Knoedler Stock Book 11, Page 173, Stock No. A8720
Stock No. A6063
Knoedler Stock Book 8, Page 186, Stock No. A2036
4) FOLD 3 and the archival mentions of Alfred Daber
May 2, 2011 - DABER, Alfred 109) Boulevard Haussmann, Paris. Art dealer, specialises in 19th and 20th Century pictures. Had a laissez-passer from the ...
Mar 26, 2012 - DABER, Alfred 109 Boulevard Haussmann, Paris. Art dealer, specialises in 19th and 20th Century pictures. Had a laissez-passer from the ...
4, I an infomed that Alfred DABER, 109, Boulevard Haussnann, Paris, was trading in looted piotures with the EINSATZSTAB ROSENBERG. He surxroned ...
Some were willing collaborators"like' Alfred Daber, Martin Fabiani, Cesar de Haucke, 0. Petrides, and Count Avogli Trotti. Others like Loebl of the Kleinberger ...
https://www.fold3.com/document/270104113/
https://www.fold3.com/document/270104113/
Feb 12, 2013 - Some were willing collaborators like Alfred Daber, Martin'Fabiani,.iCdsar de Haucke, 0. Petrides, and Count Avogli Trottii Others likV'Loebel of ...
Louis CQUPAQHIE de la CHINE et des INDES' ' HENOU ot COLLE - S DABER, Alfred ,T., SCKMITT, Joan . 1 DESLOUIS .J. SCHOELLER, Andre ' " . i'.V .is.
I an infomed that Alfred DABER, 109, Boulevard Haussnann, Paris, 'was trading in looted pictures with the EMSATZSTAB ROSENBERG. He summoned TANNER ...
https://www.fold3.com/document/270101397/
https://www.fold3.com/document/270101397/
Alfred DABER art dealer Bid. Houssaann (in connection with 2VMER of Zurich). Cesar do HAUCKE art dealer, ? PETPJDES art dealer, Count Avogli TROTTI art ...
... RENOU et COLLE DABER, Alfred SCHMITT, Jean DESLOUIS - SCHOELLER, Andre DEQUOY, Roger SIMON Galerie DESMARETS et GODARD SOO & CIE.
2f, I am informed that Alfred DABER, .109, Boulevard Haussmann, Pari3, was trading in looted pictures with the EDTSATZSTAB ROSENBERG.. He summoned ...
... of TODTMDOS-AU (Badon) TOm Paris Martin FABIANI art dealer, Avenue Matignon, Roger DEQUOX . art dealer Rue la Boetie, Alfred DABER . -, art dealer ...
https://www.fold3.com/image/270037474
https://www.fold3.com/image/270037474
I an infomed that Alfred DABER, 109, Boulevard Haussnann, Paris, was trading in looted piotures with the EINSATZSTAB ROSENBERG. He suvxioned TWINER ...
... Charles CHALEY6SIN NICOLIER, Jean COMPAGNIE de la CHINE v OSTINS, J.R. et des INDES PERDOUX, Yves DaBER, Alfred PERRET-VIBERT DEQ00Y.
(Baden) Fron Paris Martin FABIANI art dealer, Avenue Matignon, Roger DEQUOI art dealer Rue la BoStie, Alfred DABER art dealer Bid, Houssannn (in ...
... COMPAGNIE de la CHINE OSTINS, J,R. et des INDES PERDOUX, Yves DABER. AlfredPERREI-VIBERT DEQOOY, Roger PEIRIDES, Galerie 6., DESLOUIS ...
Roger DEQUOY art dealer Rue la Bofitio, Alfred DABER art dealer Bid, Houssmann (in connection with TANNER of Zurich), Cesar de HAUCKE art dealer.
J.R. et des INDES PERDOUX, Yves DABER- Alfred PERRET-VIBERT DEQUOY, Roger PETRIDES, Galerie 0. DESLOUIS POPOFF, Alexandre DESMARETS et ...
Basic Source Documents On Emil Daber Ez Gea Branch › Page 2 ... partner is the non-aryan Mr Alfred Seligmann, residence Berlin 1 Handicraft sole enterprise, ...
J.R. et des INDES , PERDOUX, Yves DABER. Alfred PERRET-VIBERT DEQUOY, Roger PET RIDES, Galerie 0. DESLOUIS POPOFF, Alexandre DESMARETS ...
Naine of Owner a Emil Daber b Max Marschenz beide Komplimenfare va- n n.no npc r l(jf'n ti imers 'AK, o Dipl. Ing. Alfred Sellgmaim d Paul Hildebrandt beiae ...
... Hans ciiamann Kapferer, Henry Creusot, Mademoiselle Katz, Manfred, alias Boyer, alias Thomas Daber, Alfred Alfred Degroof j Keller Delneco, Emile Khoth, ...
5) Art Books by Alfred Daber
The obvious question is what credibility could any provenance text written by Alfred Daber have concerning the ownership history of an artwork during the Nazi era?
Jan 4, 2019
Switzerland in the Art Looting Investigation Unit Red Flag List of Names
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| Art Market Network Visualisation for Swiss dealers: focus Theodor Fischer source: Art Looting Investigation Unit Final Report |
The 1946 ALIU Final Report broke the Red Flag List Name down into ten separate geographical areas: Germany, France, Switzerland, The Netherlands, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Sweden and Luxembourg.
The network was International and overlapped But the ALIU tried to identify important actors by country.
In this post, we will look at the ALIU's listings for Switzerland.
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| The place where two networks intersect is extremely interesting. Red Flag Names in the Switzerland section of the 1946 Art Looting Investigation Unit Final Report meet Red Flag Names that mention Linz in the description |
So far we have looked at a few individual names and their networks as described in the 1946 report.
In this post we change focus to examine the links to a geographical area: Switzerland. Note: we are using the ALIU units category "Switzerland" for this analysis.
(An alternative approach would be to include every Red Flag entry that mentions the word "Switzerland" or a city in the country of Switzerland. This second approach would capture individuals not of Swiss nationality who had links to Switzerland which could be useful.)
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| Map of ALIU Red Flag names from the section on Switzerland, using the location information in the 1946 report. |
The original ALIU texts are attached to each red data point.
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| Zoom on Zurich art dealers (source: ALIU 1946 Final Report) |
The only data cleaning was to correct three misspellings discussed in a previous post: Seira==> Skira; Caillier ==> Cailler; and Natman ==>Nathan). Otherwise the texts displayed are exactly as written in 1946 by the OSS Art Looting Investigation Unit.
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| The ALIU entry for Tanner, President of the Federation of Swiss Art Dealers. The red marker is automatically located at Zurich, Bahnhofstrasse 29, the location included in the ALIU Final Report. |
Above is the Art Looting Investigation Unit 1946 entry for Tanner, President of the Federation of Swiss Art Dealers.
Below is the ALIU 1946 entry for Neupert Galerie.
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| Galerie Neupert in Zurich "Father and son art dealers, in contact with Hofer, Haberstock, Lohse and Fischer" (source: ALIU final Report) |
Albert Skira (which had been mistranscribed in the ALIU digital version as Seira) had a very long entry in 1946.
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| Albert Skira in Geneva: "Owner of publishing firm'Editions d'Art', on British and American Proclaimed Lists (source: ALIU Final Report) |
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| Dr Fritz Nathan in St Gallen: "Adviser to Buehrle, and intermediary between Fischer, Hofer and Buehrle" (source: ALIU Fnal Report) |
Misspellings such as those for Nathan (Natman), Skira (Seira) and Cailler (Caillier) generate errors in network analysis and have to be corrected before generating intersecting network graphs.
Below is the cluster for Switzerland - that is, Red Flag names that were presented in the "Switzerland" section of the Final Report.
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| The list of Red Flag Names in the Switzerland section of the ALIU Final Report can be visualised as a network.
Which names to focus on? We can look at the number of mentions in both the ALIU Red Flag list and the Switzerland section of this list for suggestions:
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We will gradually explore the different clusters within the Swiss and other networks in future posts.
For more on analysing art dealing networks, see also:
Lootedart.com: https://www.lootedart.com/MVI3RM469661
(which obtained its information from NARA http://www.archives.gov/research/holocaust/art/ accessed 4 February 2008
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