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The family members of a Jewish pair have initiated legal proceedings against The Met, claiming that a Vincent van Gogh oil painting was looted by the Nazis.

Historical Background

Per the lawsuit, the Stern couple bought the painting, titled Olive Picking, in the mid-1930s. A year after, they were obliged to escape their home in Munich, Germany just before WWII.

The suit states that the institution, which purchased the painting in 1956 for $125,000, should have known it was likely stolen property. The heirs are now seeking the return of the painting along with damages.

In the decades since the war, this Nazi-looted painting has been repeatedly and secretly trafficked, purchased and sold in and through the city of New York, claims the legal filing.

Forced Emigration

Hedwig and Frederick Stern fled from the city of Munich to the United States in 1936 with their six children due to the oppressive Nazi regime. Nevertheless, they were barred from transporting the artwork, which was painted by the celebrated artist in 1889.

Prior to their departure, the Nazi government declared the artwork as a German cultural asset and forbade the family from bringing it with them. After obtaining permission from a Third Reich agent, a agent assigned by the Nazis auctioned the piece on the Sterns' behalf. Yet, the proceeds from the sale were placed in a frozen account, which the authorities later took.

Later Transactions

In 1948, or soon after, the canvas was brought to New York and was acquired by a wealthy American, one of America's wealthiest people. Later, it was sold through a gallery to the museum, which then passed it on to Greek shipping magnate the magnate and his partner, Elise, in 1972.

The Goulandris pair founded the BEG in 1979, which runs a gallery in the Greek capital where the artwork is currently shown.

Court Allegations

BEG and a living relative of the magnate are named as defendants. The legal action states that the Goulandris family and its related entities have concealed and disguised the artwork's provenance and whereabouts from the plaintiffs.

Currently, the foundation continue to hide how and when the BEG came into possession of the artwork; the family's possession of the artwork from several years; and the facts that the Nazis confiscated the artwork from the Stern family, coerced the Sterns into disposing of it via a Nazi-appointed agent, and seized the funds of the deal.

Prior Cases

The Stern heirs filed a similar complaint in CA in recently, but it was rejected in the following years. An appeal was also denied in recently.

The Met's Position

The complaint argues that the institution's buying of the artwork was authorized by a curator, the museum's curator of European paintings and one of the world's foremost experts on Nazi art looting. The curator and the museum knew or should have known that the artwork had likely been stolen by the regime.

The institution issued a statement that it takes seriously its ongoing pledge to handle Nazi-era claims.

A spokesperson remarked: Never during the institution's custody of the artwork was there any evidence that it had previously been owned to the Stern family – actually, that knowledge did not become accessible until a long time after the masterpiece left the Met's possession.

The museum's disposal of the artwork met the Met's guidelines for deaccessioning – namely, it was documented that the work was judged to be of inferior standard than additional artworks of the comparable nature in the collection. Even though The Met upholds its view that this artwork entered the collection and was removed legally and well within all standards and procedures, the institution invites and will examine any new information that comes to light.

Foundation's Defense

Legal counsel acting for the foundation stated: The institution is a highly prestigious organization in Athens. The attempt to sue and smear the institution and the family in the America upon misleadingly incomplete allegations was previously dismissed, multiple times. We are confident it will be again.