Major creditors of the city of Detroit filed a request in the bankruptcy proceeding to hasten the process of evaluating the value of the collection of the Detroit Institute of Arts. The motion raises a few questions, but fundamentally it is off-base: in a municipal bankruptcy the creditors are never going to be able to force… Continue Reading
Monthly Archives: November 2013
GoldieBlox Parodies the Beastie Boys and “Girls”—Fair Use is Clear, What About Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody”?
Posted in Copyright, Fair UseCoverage has exploded this week of a dispute between the Beastie Boys and a company called “GoldieBlox,” over the latter’s use of the song “Girls” in a video encouraging engineering and structural play toys for girls. Despite coverage focusing on whether Goldie Box copied the Beastie Boys’ song (which is undisputed, really, and thus beside… Continue Reading
5Pointz Not of “Recognized Stature” Under the Visual Artists Rights Act? Court Takes the Narrow View and Paintings are Whitewashed
Posted in Copyright, LitigationAmidst all the coverage over famed graffiti artist Banksy’s recent “residence” in New York and questions about how artistic license would fare against trespassing and graffiti laws (short answer: poorly), another graffiti case in New York this month has explored the reach of the Visual Artists Rights Act of 1990 (VARA). Ultimately, the law did… Continue Reading
The Auctioneer is the Agent of the Seller in Every Auction: Buyer Gets the Better of Argument in Jenack Appeal Oral Argument. Are Auction Houses Ready if Result Stands?
Posted in Auctions, LegislationThe New York Court of Appeals held oral argument last week in the appeal from the Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court’s ruling in Jenack v. Rabizadeh that an auctioneer must disclose the name of any owner who has consigned the work for sale, or a sale against a successful bidder cannot… Continue Reading
Gurlitt Vows to Fight for Art Collection, Possible Limitations Under German Law Still Unclear. Does Austria Have Say?
Posted in Gurlitt Collection, Restitution, World War IIDer Spiegel conducted a face to face interview with Cornelius Gurlitt that was published over the weekend, addressing his intentions about the 1,400 artworks connected to Nazi looting. Most striking was Gurlitt’s declaration with regard to the artworks seized by Bavarian tax authorities “I will give nothing back willingly.” The highlights of the interview, available… Continue Reading
New York Court of Appeals Rejects a “Spoils of War” Doctrine in Flamenbaum
Posted in Restitution, World War IIThe New York Court of Appeals has decisively rejected the argument that a nation may acquire good title to a work of art by virtue of that work’s status as the “spoils of war,” an important holding that will affect future restitution claims brought under New York law. From the Court of Appeals: The Vorderasiatisches… Continue Reading
Gurlitt Taskforce Announces Plan to Post 590 More Works. Choice of Law, Procedure, and Venue for Claims Up in the Air
Posted in Gurlitt Collection, Restitution, World War IIIngeborg Berggreen-Merkel, leader of the newly formed federal “Schwabing Art Find” taskforce, announced plans to release information about 590 additional works found in the apartment of Cornelius Gurlitt, after the posting earlier this week of 25 works at www.lostart.de. Meanwhile, the heirs of Max Ernst have publicly disclosed (through their attorney Jürgen Wilhelm in Cologne)… Continue Reading
REMINDER Restitution and Repatriation: the Return of Cultural Objects at DePaul University November 14, 2013
Posted in Cultural Property, Events, Restitution, World War IIA reminder of this Thursday’s event, all the more timely as the Gurlitt collection fallout continues: DePaul University College of Law Center for Art, Museum & Cultural Heritage Law will host a symposium on November 14, 2013 entitled “Restitution and Repatriation: the Return of Cultural Objects.” A similar conference could not be held last year because… Continue Reading
First List of Art Found in Gurlitt Collection is Released, Website Overwhelmed as Claimants Consider Legal Options
Posted in Gurlitt Collection, Restitution, World War IIThe German government has released an initial list of twenty five works among the collection seized from the Munich (Schwabing) apartment of Cornelius Gurlitt, the most significant discovery of possibly looted art since the end of World War II. The list is posted at www.lostart.de, a hitherto little-known website of the Coordination Point for Cultural… Continue Reading
IFAR to Host “Artists Resale Rights in the U.S.: Overdue or Shouldn’t Do?”
Posted in Events, Resale RoyaltiesThe International Foundation for Art Research (IFAR) will host on November 25, 2013 a panel entitled “Artists Resale Rights in the U.S.: Overdue or Shouldn’t Do?” As readers here know, the topic of artists’ resale royalty rights, or droit de suite, is an area of copyright law about disagreement is strong. Should artists receive a… Continue Reading
Proposed Legislation in New York Would Help Shield Authentication Experts from Liability
Posted in Appraisal, Authentication, Knoedler, LegislationAt Friday’s Art Law Day at the annual meeting of the Appraisers Association of America, Judith Bresler gave the keynote address on the topic of the complications created by prosective liability for authentication experts. As prominent cases ranging from the Knoedler forgeries to the decision by the Warhol Foundation and others to cease authenticating works… Continue Reading
German Federal Government Wants Gurlitt Collection Made Public, Some May Have Come to U.S., More Art Seized in Stuttgart, Cornelius Gurlitt Spotted in Munich After Bizarre Request for Anonymity
Posted in Gurlitt Collection, Restitution, World War IIThe fire hose of Gurlitt collection information continues unabated. For stellar reporting keep track of Bloomberg and the Wall Street Journal in English, the FAZ and Der Spiegel in German. We’ll continue to track the legal fallout of the facts as the journalists continue to uncover them. As we expected, the German federal government is… Continue Reading
German Museums Join in Demands for More Information About Gurlitt; Links to the Amber Room Theorized; Dix Painting Was Not Unknown
Posted in Gurlitt Collection, Museums, Restitution, World War IIDer Spiegel reports today (link in German) about how German museums are joining the chorus of frustration about the lack of information about the Hildebrand and Cornelius Gurlitt collection find. From this perspective, this development is not a surprise. I was speaking to an international law class last night at Sarah Lawrence College, and one… Continue Reading
Focus Turns to Hildebrand Gurlitt’s Postwar Interrogation; Cornelius Gurlitt’s Whereabouts. Belvedere Official Questions Whether Collection Was Really a Secret
Posted in Gurlitt Collection, Restitution, World War IIThe focus has turned today on the whereabouts of the mysterious Cornelius Gurlitt, who is unaccounted for as the biggest restitution story since the end of World War II unfolds. Asked if it was even known if Gurlitt was still alive Bavarian prosecutor Reinhard Nemetz would not even comment. There is an explosive claim… Continue Reading
Hildebrand Gurlitt Interview Transcript is Located
Posted in Gurlitt Collection, Restitution, World War IIThe Commission for Looted Art in Europe has located the transcript of the interview taken of Hildebrand Gurlitt at the end of World War II, concerning the bulk of what now seems to have been found in his son’s apartment. Gurlitt denies buying art in France. The document is linked above.
“Here and Now”: Questions Remain About Nazi-Looted Art Trove
Posted in Events, Gurlitt Collection, Restitution, World War IIIn case you missed it live, WBUR’s “Here and Now” has posted the story and audio from today’s interview about the Cornelius Gurlitt Nazi-looted art find.
Merkel Hints at Putting Gurlitt Lists Online, Calls for Special Tribunal Are Made
Posted in Gurlitt Collection, Restitution, World War IICatherine Hickley reports from Berlin that the government of Chancellor Angela Merkel is looking into ways to put lists and/or photographs online concerning the Cornelius Gurlitt seizure of roughly 1,400 paintings with connections to Nazi looting. This followed heavy complaints in the first days of the revelation, that the government had failed to identify what… Continue Reading
“Here and Now” on WBUR Tomorrow to Discuss Gurlitt Nazi Art Find in Munich
Posted in Events, Gurlitt Collection, Restitution, World War III’ll be a guest on “Here and Now” on WBUR (syndicated nationally, and available for live streaming on WBUR’s website) tomorrow between noon at 1:00 pm to discuss this week’s discovery of nearly 1,400 paintings had been found in the Munich apartment of Cornelius Gurlitt two years ago (and ongoing updates), and the theme of Nazi… Continue Reading
New Details, More Questions Than Answers in Gurlitt Nazi-Tinged Painting Find in Munich
Posted in Gurlitt Collection, Restitution, World War IIThe Bavarian prosecutor held a press conference today to discuss the revelation this weekend in Focus that nearly 1,400 paintings had been found in the Munich apartment of Cornelius Gurlitt two years ago, after he aroused suspicion by bringing a large amount of cash back into Germany from Switzerland in 2010. This continues to shape… Continue Reading
Paintings Targeted by the Nazis Found in Munich, Could be Biggest Discovery Since the War. What Now?
Posted in Gurlitt Collection, Restitution, World War IIThe German magazine Focus broke a story over the weekend that could be the biggest restitution news since Portrait of Wally or Altmann v. Republic of Austria: roughly 1,400 paintings were found in a Munich apartment that may have been seized, looted, or sold bought under duress by the Nazis in the 1930s as part… Continue Reading
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