Acquisitions for the graphic art collection at the Wallraf-Richartz-Museum between 1933 and 1945

From September 2013 to December 2017, the Bureau for Provenance Research funded the systematic indexing of the Prints and Drawings Collection at the Wallraf-Richartz-Museum & Fondation Corboud. Under the directorship of Prof. Otto Helmut Förster (1894–1975) and head of prints Dr. Helmut May (1906–1993), the Wallraf-Richartz-Museum (WRM) acquired around 2,500 European drawings, watercolors and prints between 1933 and 1945. These works date from the 15th century to the 20th century and were obtained as purchases, exchanges and donations. They include 332 drawings and watercolors, and a total of 2,056 prints. The aim of the research project was to fully clarify the origin of these drawings and prints acquired in the above-mentioned time frame, leaving as few gaps as possible. New ground was broken in the graphic art field with this examination of the holdings for Nazi-confiscated property; the majority of projects previously funded by the Bureau had focused mainly on the investigation of paintings. The properties intrinsic to the graphics genre, its genesis in art history as an art form that, for a long time, was not considered independently in its own right, and the low pricing of graphic works on the art market were all reasons to initiate such a project. The first of these has a particular effect when it comes to unambiguously identifying an object, and identification forms the basis for clarifying the origin of cultural goods in general. Qua technique, the characteristic of originality, can only be ascribed to drawings or watercolors, and in doing so enable them to be unequivocally identified. This is in contrast to graphic prints, which are often produced in larger numbers. Only through their utilization in the art system (artists, dealers, collectors), and the traces of these movements that are left behind on the object in the form of labeling, stamps, marks, etc. can graphic prints be ascribed unique characteristics, which they does not possess as regards technique. In addition to the thorough examination of the works, further sources of information that clearly identified the object were consulted. The documentation and the resulting body of source material are, however, rudimentary overall in the field of graphic works in the art system (art dealers, museums, etc.). More positive is the fact that, in the WRM, inventory books have been preserved with entries that are chronologically ordered and almost complete, sometimes accompanied by illustrations. These formed the basis for the research into the origin of the graphic works acquired between 1933 and 1945. During the project period, the team were able to structure the analog and digital object documentation, specify the objects to be investigated, and clarify the first provenance details. Firstly, the size of the stock to be examined was reduced by around 250 objects by identifying inventories and objects where the suspicion of Nazi-confiscated property could be ruled out. Other objects are no longer located at the museum: these include objects from the “degenerate art” confiscation campaign, sold items and losses. Secondly, the individuals and institutions linked to the origin of the objects were recorded and investigated more closely. In terms of previous owners, around 100 private individuals, artists, art dealerships and auction houses were listed. The names of these include: Abels gallery (Cologne), C.G. Boerner (Leipzig/Düsseldorf), Ackermann & Sauerwein (Munich/Frankfurt a.M.), Gerstenberger (Chemnitz), Bammann (Düsseldorf), and also the art dealership of Hildebrand Gurlitt (Hamburg). Because the existing state of research meant provenance information could be found for only around two thirds of the works to be investigated, context research and a study of the museum’s collection and institution history during the National Socialist era were of particular importance.

Given the scope of this large-scale collection, it was necessary to set priorities and bundle activities together in the examination procedures. Areas of focus included, in particular, a study of 19th-century German art, the French art market, and the Boerner art dealership, which supplied 87 artworks to the WRM.The results of the research project have been added to www.kulturelles-erbe-koeln.de, where they can be viewed. Further results will continue to be incorporated into the site gradually after the end of the project.Partial results have been published as part of the exhibition “Provenienz Macht Geschichte” (11/06/2015 to 1/31/2016).

(c) Wallraf-Richartz-Museum