Lucerne Art Museum makes examination of works a principle
Published: Monday, May 6th 2024, 11:21
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The Lucerne Art Museum wants to continuously examine works that came into the museum between 1933 and 1945 and in the post-war period. A new, permanently installed commission is to advise the museum on this. The canton and city are contributing to the costs.
The art museum is thus breaking new ground, which is unique in Switzerland for a museum of this size and sponsorship, it announced on Monday together with the canton and city of Lucerne.
Between 2016 and 2018, the museum had already examined the provenance of 78 works in the collection - with the support of the City and Canton of Lucerne and the Federal Office of Culture. So far, the investigations have been limited to objects acquired between 1933 and 1945.
However, this no longer corresponds to current research practice, it continues. Even in the years after the war, Jews were forced to sell works due to financial hardship. The restriction to 78 works is therefore no longer justifiable for the Kunstmuseum, according to the press release.
The museum therefore resumed its research activities last fall. While the current research project, which is co-financed by the public sector, is still ongoing, it is becoming apparent that there will be an urgent need for provenance research at the Lucerne Museum of Art even after the project ends in June 2025. This should therefore be firmly established at the museum, according to the statement.
Annual cost ceiling: 70,000 francs
The canton and city see dealing with the past as a central and ongoing task and have now included it in the service agreement, according to a press release.
A cost ceiling of CHF 70,000 per year has been set for provenance research, as museum director Fanni Fetzer told the Keystone-SDA news agency in response to an inquiry. The costs would be shared between the public sector, the Lucerne Art Society and the BEST Art Collection Lucerne Foundation according to a fixed formula.
The seven-member "recommending commission", as it is called, is made up of members from the fields of science, culture and law. According to the press release, they are distinguished by their sensitivity to Jewish culture and in-depth knowledge of the history of Jewish persecution and emigration during the National Socialist era.
According to the museum director, there are currently no cultural objects from a colonial context in the collection of the Kunstmuseum Luzern. However, should a colonial connection become apparent, these objects would also be examined. In this case, other people might have to be called in to find a "just and fair solution". According to Fetzer, this will also be possible with the cost ceiling provided.
©Keystone/SDA
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