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The descendants of a Jewish couple have initiated legal proceedings against The Metropolitan Museum of Art, claiming that a Van Gogh oil painting was looted by Nazi forces.

Historical Background

According to the lawsuit, Hedwig and Frederick Stern acquired the artwork, titled Olive Harvest, in the mid-1930s. Just one year later, they were obliged to escape their dwelling in the German city of Munich on the eve of World War II.

The legal action contends that the Met, which purchased the masterpiece in 1956 for one hundred twenty-five thousand dollars, should have known it was almost certainly confiscated property. The descendants are now requesting the restitution of the painting along with compensation.

Following World War II, this plundered piece has been repeatedly and secretly trafficked, purchased and sold in and through the city of New York, states the lawsuit.

The Sterns' Escape

The Stern family escaped from the city of Munich to America in 1936 with their offspring due to the oppressive Nazi regime. Nevertheless, they were barred from transporting the artwork, which was produced by the Dutch post-impressionist in 1889.

Before they left, the regime designated the masterpiece as German cultural property and banned the family from exporting it. Following authorization from a regime representative, a representative assigned by the regime auctioned the painting on the Sterns' behalf. Yet, the proceeds from the sale were held in a restricted account, which the regime later seized.

Post-War History

By 1948, or shortly after, the painting arrived in New York and was bought by a prominent figure, one of America's wealthiest people. Subsequently, it was transferred through a commercial outlet to the institution, which then transferred it to prominent shipowner the magnate and his spouse, Elise, in the early 1970s.

The Greek couple established the Goulandris Foundation in the late 1970s, which manages a gallery in Athens, Greece where the artwork is currently shown.

Court Allegations

The institution and a living relative of the magnate are named as defendants. The legal action states that the defendants and its affiliates have concealed and disguised the masterpiece's history and whereabouts from the family.

Even now, the Goulandris Defendants continue to obscure the circumstances the foundation came into ownership of the artwork; the family's possession of the artwork from 1935 to 1938; and the facts that the Third Reich looted the artwork from the Stern family, coerced the couple into selling it via a regime representative, and confiscated the proceeds of the transaction.

Prior Cases

The descendants initiated a similar complaint in CA in 2022, but it was thrown out in the following years. An appeal was also rejected in recently.

The Met's Position

The legal action contends that the Met's purchase of the artwork was authorized by Theodore Rousseau Jr, the institution's specialist of European art and a renowned specialist on Nazi-era looted art. The curator and the museum were aware or ought to have been aware that the masterpiece had likely been stolen by Nazis.

The museum issued a statement that it is committed to its historical dedication to handle issues related to WWII.

A spokesperson stated: At no time during the museum's possession of the painting was there any evidence that it had once belonged to the heirs – actually, that data did not become available until many years after the artwork left the Met's possession.

The institution's deaccessioning of the Van Gogh met the Met's guidelines for disposal – specifically, it was documented that the piece was considered to be of lesser quality than other works of the same type in the collection. Even though the museum maintains its view that this piece entered the holdings and was removed legally and well within all guidelines and policies, the institution welcomes and will consider any new information that comes to light.

BEG's Response

William Charron on behalf of the foundation commented: The institution is a esteemed foundation in Athens. The action to sue and smear the Foundation and the Goulandris family in the America upon misleadingly incomplete allegations was previously dismissed, multiple times. We are confident it will be a third time.