Kunsthaus Zürich and Bührle Foundation to Discuss Collection's Future After Gross Report
The Facts
On July 10, 2024, Kunsthaus Zürich and its patron association, the Zürcher Kunstgesellschaft, jointly with the City and Canton of Zurich, announced that they have agreed to enter discussions with the owner of the Bührle Collection, the Foundation E. G. Bührle Collection, to find sustainable solutions after an independent review by historian Raphael Gross found that considerable further provenance research is needed, particularly regarding former Jewish ownership. Gross's 167-page report, available since the end of June 2024, reviewed existing research and concluded that the new provenance standards set by the Kunsthaus in 2023 have not been met for the Bührle Collection. The works have been displayed on long-term loan in the Kunsthaus's Chipperfield building since October 2021, with the loan running through 2034. The subsidy agreement approved by the Zurich city parliament in March 2023 prohibits exhibiting works confiscated as a result of Nazi persecution.
The Signal
The report sharpens the longstanding controversy around the Bührle Collection, assembled by arms industrialist Emil Bührle, much of which was acquired during the Nazi era. For museums and collectors, the case highlights the growing expectation that long-term loans of collections with unresolved provenance be subject to the same rigorous standards as permanent holdings. The discussions now opened between the Kunstgesellschaft and the Foundation signal that the current arrangement may require renegotiation, potentially including restitution claims or reconfiguration of the display. The process is likely to be lengthy and costly, as the report calls for years of further research.
- People: Raphael Gross, Philipp Hildebrand
- Museums: Kunsthaus Zürich
- Locations: Zurich
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