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The family members of a Jewish spouses have filed a lawsuit against The Metropolitan Museum of Art, asserting that a Van Gogh oil painting was seized by the Nazis.

Case History

As stated in the lawsuit, Frederick and Hedwig Stern bought the piece, titled Gathering Olives, in the year 1935. Just one year later, they were obliged to escape their dwelling in the German city of Munich prior to World War II.

The complaint contends that the institution, which purchased the masterpiece in the mid-1950s for one hundred twenty-five thousand dollars, must have realized it was almost certainly stolen property. The family are now seeking the repatriation of the artwork along with damages.

Following the war, this plundered piece has been frequently and covertly traded, acquired and disposed of in and through the city of New York, alleges the court document.

The Sterns' Escape

Hedwig and Frederick Stern fled from their Munich home to the United States in 1936 with their large family due to the oppressive Nazi regime. Nevertheless, they were prevented from taking the Van Gogh piece, which was painted by the celebrated artist in the late 19th century.

Before the family's emigration, the Nazi government declared the painting as property of the state and prohibited the Sterns from taking it abroad. Once approved from a Third Reich agent, a representative designated by the authorities disposed of the painting on the Sterns' behalf. Yet, the money from the transaction were deposited in a restricted account, which the regime later took.

Post-War History

Around 1948, or shortly after, the artwork was brought to New York and was acquired by a wealthy American, one of America's wealthiest people. Eventually, it was transferred through a art dealer to the Met, which then transferred it to wealthy Greek businessman the magnate and his wife, Mrs. Goulandris, in 1972.

The Goulandris pair founded the BEG in 1979, which manages a gallery in Athens, Greece where the artwork is currently shown.

Claims and Defenses

The institution and a surviving nephew of Basil Goulandris are named as defendants. The filing states that the Goulandris family and its affiliates have hidden and obscured the masterpiece's history and whereabouts from the heirs.

To this day, the Goulandris Defendants continue to conceal how and when the BEG came into ownership of the Painting; the family's possession of the masterpiece from several years; and the facts that the Third Reich confiscated the Painting from the heirs, coerced the family into parting with it via a trustee, and took the funds of the deal.

Prior Cases

The Stern heirs filed a related lawsuit in California in the year 2022, but it was dismissed in the following years. An further action was also denied in recently.

Institution's Statement

The complaint contends that the institution's buying of the painting was approved by the museum's expert, the museum's curator of European art and one of the world's foremost experts on Nazi-era looted art. The curator and the museum must have known that the masterpiece had likely been seized by the regime.

The Met issued a statement that it takes seriously its longstanding commitment to address Nazi-era claims.

A spokesperson commented: Never during the museum's possession of the artwork was there any record that it had earlier been possessed to the heirs – indeed, that knowledge did not become accessible until many years after the masterpiece left the Museum's collection.

The museum's disposal of the artwork met the Met's guidelines for removal from collection – namely, it was documented that the piece was judged to be of inferior standard than other pieces of the comparable nature in the holdings. While the museum respectfully stands by its stance that this piece entered the inventory and was removed properly and well within all standards and procedures, the museum is open to and will review any additional details that comes to light.

Goulandris Statement

A lawyer acting for BEG stated: The Goulandris Foundation is a renowned institution in the Greek capital. The attempt to sue and smear the institution and the Goulandris family in the US upon misleadingly incomplete allegations was earlier rejected, multiple times. We are convinced it will be a third time.