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The descendants of a Jewish couple have brought a case against The Metropolitan Museum of Art, claiming that a Van Gogh art piece was seized by the Nazis.

Origins of the Dispute

Per the legal filing, the Stern couple acquired the artwork, titled Olive Picking, in 1935. The following year, they were forced to flee their dwelling in the German city of Munich prior to World War II.

The legal action contends that the institution, which acquired the painting in the 1950s for one hundred twenty-five thousand dollars, must have realized it was likely stolen property. The family are now requesting the return of the artwork along with damages.

In the decades since World War II, this stolen artwork has been repeatedly and secretly trafficked, acquired and disposed of in and through the city of New York, states the legal filing.

Forced Emigration

The Sterns departed from their Munich home to the United States in 1936 with their six children due to Nazi persecution. However, they were unable to bring the Van Gogh piece, which was produced by the renowned Dutch in the late 19th century.

Before they left, Nazi authorities classified the masterpiece as property of the state and forbade the Sterns from bringing it with them. Once approved from a Nazi official, a representative assigned by the Nazis auctioned the painting on the Sterns' behalf. But, the proceeds from the sale were deposited in a blocked account, which the regime later seized.

Subsequent Ownership

By 1948, or soon after, the canvas entered New York and was purchased by a wealthy American, among the richest individuals in the US. Later, it was exchanged through a art dealer to the Met, which then transferred it to wealthy Greek businessman the magnate and his partner, Mrs. Goulandris, in 1972.

Basil and Elise founded the BEG in 1979, which operates a institution in the Greek capital where the artwork is currently exhibited.

Legal Arguments

BEG and a surviving nephew of Basil Goulandris are named as defendants. The legal action states that the family and its related entities have hidden and obscured the masterpiece's history and whereabouts from the plaintiffs.

To this day, the defendants continue to obscure how and when the institution came into ownership of the piece; the family's possession of the masterpiece from several years; and the truth that the regime stole the Painting from the family, forced the couple into parting with it via a regime representative, and seized the money of the deal.

Previous Legal Action

The descendants submitted a related lawsuit in California in the year 2022, but it was thrown out in the following years. An further action was also denied in recently.

The Met's Position

The legal action argues that the Met's purchase of the artwork was authorized by the museum's expert, the museum's curator of European paintings and a renowned specialist on Nazi art looting. The institution and its expert were aware or ought to have been aware that the artwork had almost certainly been looted by the Nazis.

The institution issued a statement that it takes seriously its historical dedication to address Nazi-era claims.

A spokesperson remarked: Not once during the museum's possession of the painting was there any evidence that it had previously been owned to the heirs – actually, that information did not become accessible until many years after the painting left the Museum's collection.

The museum's disposal of Olive Picking met the Met's guidelines for deaccessioning – in particular, it was noted that the piece was considered to be of lower caliber than other works of the same type in the inventory. Although the museum respectfully stands by its position that this artwork entered the collection and was deaccessioned legally and well within all rules and regulations, the museum is open to and will review any additional details that comes to light.

Foundation's Defense

Legal counsel acting for BEG said: BEG is a esteemed foundation in the Greek capital. The effort to litigate and defame the organization and the Goulandris family in the US upon deceptive and insufficient accusations was earlier rejected, twice. We are confident it will be once more.