Restitution dopiruyut Art Market

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This article was published in Gareth Le Monde and a half years ago, on November 11, 2006, but I think it may interest some readers forum, so put it. In the end, no one is obliged to read his stories are not interesting, so I was not ashamed of the product in excess of shelf life, which I propose to you: o

Translation not tested again (but, in principle, everything should be clear) - here's the task: nothing to sit back, fix my mistakes and typos.


The restitution dopiruyut Art Market
Vensen Nose

Never before has public auction did not reach such astronomical prices, each auction beats Recorbet previous. This triumph is largely due to restitution. Indeed, a significant portion of the proceeds from public auction brought paintings returned to the families of victims of the Nazi regime - Kirchner vozvryashenny not without controversy, the Berlin museum Schiele, who returned to France, Tiepolo, transferred to the Louvre the family of the owner ...

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The present furor caused sales of the portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer Klimt, after a long struggle, obtained by the heirs of the Vienna Museum. I must say, quote Klimt is increased after Ronald Loader, son of Queen Esther cosmetics Loader, bought another portrait of Adele Bloch-Baueer originating from the same source. "I want this portrait, however much it may cost, I Josu make him my Mona Lisa Museum (Neue Galerie near central park), he told us before the conclusion of the transaction. And" Golden Adele "has for some time the most expensive piece of art in the world.
The niece of Adele Bauer, Maria Altmann arrived accompanied by his lawyer from Los Angeles to attend the auction. Maria Altmann, the proposal is to leave the paintings in Vienna for the honorarium of Vienna museum refused, she could not imagine that the painting will reach such a price. This "explosion" of the art market was a reaction to the restitution.

"Is there a market restitution?" - This question is not shocking nor Aronovittsa Richard, who heads the department in London Sotheby's, the monitoring of illegal confiscation of works of art, nor Thomas Seydoux, director of Impressionist and modern art Christies in Paris. Without hesitation, both responsible utverzhitelno.
Since 1994, when he was the first time in London was sold at auction Figure Van Gogh returned to a Jewish family of German origin, the two companies have organized this Command headquarters generalnogo to endear successors. Instead of complete indifference shown by them to this issue for decades, came to a rigorous verification of the origin of each item that is being done, in particular, using a database of stolen works of art Art Loss Register. Both companies offer their services to the families of the victims. They facilitate the contact between the parties that could lead to a settlement agreement - "gentlemen's agreement", as happened with the picture of a pink period, Picasso sold at auction after an agreement between it and the successor sladeltsem Iozanny Mayer-Udevald, arrested in the Netherlands and oltpravlennoy to Auschwitz to die . But the zeal of auction houses is not unlimited - the need for commercial secrecy forbids them to divulge the identity of owners of illegally selected items.

Such philanthropic twist in the behavior is not without merit - he helps auction houses to respond to the increasing demands of art lovers. The fact that the work of first-class masters of impressionism and the first half of the twentieth century, practically no longer appeared on the market, and the appearance of returned works extremely revive him. Richard Aronovitts stressed that the list pays tribute to - unfortunately, too late - "impeccable taste" enlightened European Jewish bourgeoisie, which, since the XIX century, has managed to distinguish themselves by going beyond ofiuialnogo art. All of these works has its own history: for example, Adele Bawe friend of Klimt, maybe she was his mistress. In any case, it is - the only model Klimt, but which wrote 2 portrait - a portrait, bought Loader, Wiese in the Vienna museum next to the famous "Kiss". And the return of these paintings to their rightful owners, which are usually a lot of the newspapers, said on television, etc., thus increasing their value.

At the same time, Thomas Seydoux said the speed with which change public opinion: "As long as the victim requiring the return of stolen public opinion is totally on their side, but as soon as he returned them to exhibit items for sale, the situation changes drastically." Representatives of the Jewish community of France expressed its concern about the increased number of sales - for example, Pber Assulin vozraet against the sale at the auction of works of art preserved in museums, and warns of the dangers to increase the number of complaints under the influence "of attorneys - hunters prize, which resulted in victims in the eyes of society "of the victims become creditors. Other, more serious consequence: forgetting that the selected pictures are often stored in museums of other countries in the German press go so far as to say about the plot: "Billionaire Loader, a former treasurer of the International Jewish Congress, has formed Commissions for tracing missing proizvedenits art. Gone years before the experts understand their intentions "- Der Spiegel wrote, without blushing for his words. In fact, the family in almost all cases, forced to sell because they do not have the means to protect and insurance of such significant works of art. None nasdelnik can not buy the rights of others. President of the American Christies, Mark Porter, warns: "assume that the demand for the return of paintings lawful successors - it is a commercial operation - a monstrously.

Many condemned the intervention of intermediaries in this waltz million. German detective who lives in Monaco, Clemens Toussaint, amassed a fortune, engaged in the search for the missing items. Hector Feliciano, who wrote the book on which the illegal rejection of works of art, do not hesitate to apply for Ellen Rosenberg, heiress Marchand dealing Cubism, Paul Rosenberg, to the court. He demanded that she gave him $ 5 million, ie 17,5%of the paintings, which he claimed he had been found. In 2003, the Court of New York refused to allow him to meet his claim.
According to rumors, Raendol Schonberg, a lawyer Maria Altmann yet have a big appetite: it seems he incriminated himself 40%of the $ 250 million, for which left Klimt. But Clemens Toussaint stressed that the investigation is very expensive. For this reason, if as a result of the database Art Loss Register missing items will be found, the owners of the list receive a substantial amount. In addition, the judicial procedure in the U.S. may cost very expensive. Ms. Altmann herself brought to the attention of the public that for a long time Randall C. Schonberg defended it without any remuneration, and that there was no guarantee that their struggle, which they brought to the U.S. Supreme Court, will be successful. The lawyer, grandson of composer Arnold Schonberg, devoted part of their fundamentals income Museum of the Holocaust, which he is president.

Employees of museums troubling fate entrusted to them the collections. Two different logic nahzodyatsyaf in opposition: Monuments kulturnotsy values, with one Soron, reparation and justice, on the other. Some people prefer to enter into negotiations to save his collection - in the U.S. this way of action does not raise any objections. In France, as did the museum of Strasbourg (the subject of negotiations was painting by Canaletto) and the Pompidou Center (a picture of marriage). One broker, who wished to remain anonymous, said that with such sensitive negotiations "of the family have made enormous concessions, as they are proud of the fact that they owned a piece of art is stored in a museum."

Perhaps it is time to close the bracket? But the time of strife is far from over - most recently, Christies had to withdraw from trades portrait of Picasso's rose period, required by premyannikom grandchild of a Jewish banker of German descent ...