Kunsthaus Zürich, Bührle Foundation Agree to Talks After Gross Report on Nazi-Era Ownership
The Facts
On July 10, 2024, the Zürcher Kunstgesellschaft, the City and Canton of Zurich and the Foundation E. G. Bührle Collection agreed to enter discussions over the Bührle Collection after historian Raphael Gross found that substantial further provenance research is required, focusing on former Jewish ownership. Gross’s 167-page report, made public June 28, 2024, concludes that the foundation’s existing research falls short of the standards set by the Kunsthaus Zürich’s provenance strategy and its spring 2023 subsidy agreement; the commissioning bodies noted that a considerable number of works were in Jewish ownership before World War II. The collection has been on long-term loan in the Kunsthaus’s Chipperfield building since October 2021, with the loan running until the end of 2034; the foundation remains owner and responsible for third-party claims.
The Signal
The move signals that provenance standards tied to public funding are being extended to long-term loans, not just museum-owned works. For the Kunsthaus and the foundation, the report creates a clear mandate and a costly, multi-year research burden, as the commissioning bodies acknowledged. Lenders to Swiss public institutions can expect demands for deeper cooperation on ownership research and just and fair solutions.
- People: Raphael Gross, Philipp Hildebrand
- Museums: Kunsthaus Zürich
- Locations: Zurich
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