First personnel is known – TOP ONLINE
But not only the personnel, but also the concept of how this evaluation should take place is now in place. Accordingly, two stages are planned, a preparatory phase and a main phase in which the actual review takes place. Clients are the Zürcher Kunstgesellschaft as well as the city and canton of Zurich. Together they have now provided insight into the preparatory work for the first steps of the actual review.
The preparatory work is now that law professor Uhlmann should organize a round table. He should also accompany the following processes and report on the results.
Independence is the top priority
The top priority for the Round Table is the independence of the experts. “Relevant and critical voices” are to be transmitted, as the statement says. But the process as a whole should “be carried out independently and meet the highest scientific standards”.
The aim of the entire process is to make it clear whether the provenance research carried out so far corresponds to international standards and whether it is a sound basis for future decisions in dealing with works of art from the Bührle Collection. The panel of experts can also make recommendations as to whether, for example, individual works should be returned.
The clients are expecting the results of the evaluation in the first half of 2024. They will also bear the costs. However, it is still unclear how high they will be. The costs result from the preparatory work that the round table is supposed to do.
No looted or escaped art in the Kunsthaus
The review of previous provenance research is included in the subsidy contract that Zurich signed with the Kunstgesellschaft last spring. The primary goal: “No works should be shown in the Kunsthaus where there are substantiated indications that they are cultural assets confiscated as a result of Nazi persecution,” says the statement. In relation to the Bührle Collection, however, there is this suspicion, which has caused quite a stir in the past year.