Acquisitions of 19th century paintings at Museum Folkwang, Essen, and the Museum of Art and Cultural History, Dortmund, with the involvement of the Dr. W. A. Luz gallery, Berlin, and other galleries, 1935–1945/The Dr. W.A. Luz gallery, Berlin

Provenance research—investigations into the ownership history of masterpieces—has long been an integral part of Museum Folkwang’s art history activities. This research helps employees obtain additional information about the creation and originality of paintings, sculptures and prints, and provides important details on the history of the collection. Its findings are regularly published in catalog contributions and essays on individual works, artists and collectors.

Seamlessly reconstructing the chain of ownership of a particular masterpiece without any gaps is often difficult and sometimes impossible, especially for periods far back in the past. Numerous documents relating to ownership have got lost due to carelessness or for other reasons, or information to this effect has been withheld during a change of ownership (e.g. because the previous owner wanted to be sure their anonymity was preserved). Information on ownership also needs to be carefully checked in each individual case because it may happen from time to time that collectors, dealers, historians and museum curators relate pieces of information found to the wrong masterpiece.

Since the adoption of the Washington Principles of 1998 and the 1999 “Declaration of the German federal government, the German states and the leading municipal associations to locate and return cultural goods confiscated through Nazi persecution”, German museums have been making increased efforts to scientifically examine their acquisition policies from the period 1933–1945. The provenance of paintings, sculptures, drawings and prints is being examined and information added where there are gaps.

Since 1998, Museum Folkwang has been conducting provenance research principally into masterpieces that came into the collection between 1935 and 1945 and in the immediate post-war era. The guidelines for this research are based on the principles defined by the Washington Conference. Up to now, the research has concentrated on individual works for which inquiries have been received from other institutions and also on the identification of those works owned by Museum Folkwang which indicate a provenance/incomplete provenance that necessitates investigation.

In this area, Museum Folkwang has recently focused its research activities on works that were acquired from the Berlin-based dealer Dr. Wilhelm August Luz between 1937 and 1942. Luz had an important position as a dealer, yet little has been known about him until now.

The Berlin gallery of Dr. Wilhelm August Luz in the Nazi state and in the post-war era

In a cooperative project funded by the Bureau for Provenance Research in Berlin, Museum Folkwang and the Museum of Art and Cultural History, Dortmund, are examining the provenance of 19th century paintings that were acquired between 1935 and 1945, or which entered the collections in Essen and Dortmund in other ways during this period.

(c) Museum Folkwang, Essen