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The family members of a Jewish spouses have filed a lawsuit against The Met, asserting that a the Dutch artist oil painting was seized by the Nazis.

Case History

According to the legal filing, Frederick and Hedwig Stern purchased the piece, titled Olive Harvest, in the year 1935. The following year, they were obliged to escape their residence in Munich, Germany on the eve of WWII.

The suit states that the museum, which acquired the artwork in the 1950s for one hundred twenty-five thousand dollars, must have realized it was likely stolen property. The family are now demanding the restitution of the canvas along with compensation.

Since the end of World War II, this stolen artwork has been repeatedly and secretly trafficked, acquired and disposed of in and through New York, alleges the legal filing.

The Sterns' Escape

The Stern family escaped from the city of Munich to America in the late 1930s with their six children due to persecution by the Nazis. Nevertheless, they were prevented from taking the artwork, which was created by the Dutch post-impressionist in 1889.

Prior to their departure, Nazi authorities declared the masterpiece as a German cultural asset and banned the couple from taking it abroad. After obtaining permission from a Nazi official, a representative appointed by the regime auctioned the artwork on the Sterns' behalf. However, the proceeds from the auction were held in a frozen account, which the regime later confiscated.

Post-War History

In 1948, or soon after, the canvas entered New York and was acquired by a wealthy American, among the richest individuals in the US. Subsequently, it was sold through a commercial outlet to the Met, which then sold it to Greek shipping magnate Goulandris and his partner, Elise Goulandris, in the early 1970s.

Basil and Elise established the Basil & Elise Goulandris Foundation in 1979, which operates a institution in Athens, Greece where the artwork is currently on display.

Court Allegations

The institution and a surviving nephew of the magnate are named as defendants. The lawsuit states that the Goulandris family and its related entities have covered up the artwork's provenance and whereabouts from the heirs.

Currently, the foundation continue to conceal the manner and time the foundation came into control of the artwork; the couple's ownership of the Painting from 1935 to 1938; and the reality that the Nazis looted the canvas from the heirs, forced the couple into selling it via a regime representative, and seized the proceeds of the deal.

Prior Cases

The Stern heirs filed a related lawsuit in CA in 2022, but it was rejected in the following years. An legal challenge was also denied in recently.

The Met's Position

The legal action states that the museum's acquisition of the painting was authorized by the museum's expert, the Met's authority of Old Masters and one of the world's foremost experts on Nazi art looting. The curator and the museum were aware or ought to have been aware that the artwork had almost certainly been looted by the Nazis.

The Met issued a statement that it prioritizes its longstanding commitment to handle issues related to WWII.

A spokesperson remarked: At no time during the institution's custody of the piece was there any evidence that it had previously been owned to the heirs – indeed, that information did not become known until several decades after the masterpiece left the Museum's collection.

The Met's sale of Olive Picking met the institution's rigorous standards for removal from collection – specifically, it was recorded that the artwork was considered to be of lower caliber than other works of the similar kind in the collection. Even though the institution respectfully stands by its view that this artwork entered the collection and was deaccessioned lawfully and well within all rules and regulations, the museum welcomes and will consider any additional details that comes to light.

Foundation's Defense

William Charron acting for the Goulandris Foundation commented: BEG is a renowned institution in Greece. The attempt to sue and smear the organization and the family in the US upon inaccurate and partial claims was previously dismissed, twice. We are certain it will be a third time.