In-depth provenance research on works by Karl Hagemeister and Theodor Hosemann, including those at Stadtmuseum Brandenburg/Havel—Museum im Frey-Haus

Searching for other works by the two artists with a possible Nazi art market origin and seeking out the previous owners of these

Checking the old stock for further purchases and ideally also tracking down the owners in order to establish whether these acquisitions, which were possibly Jewish property, had been lawful or unlawful Consequently, as well as works by the above-mentioned artists, a painting by each of the following was also included in the investigation: Franz Skarbina (1849–1910), Eduard Grützner (1846–1925), F. A. Gerold (dates unknown) and, during the ongoing work, a painting study by Brynolf Wennerberg the Younger (1866–1950) which proved to be a new acquisition in 1943.

The project in numbers

The research revealed the following on the three groups of objects:

On eight paintings by Karl Hagemeister and five losses: - Five were bought on the Nazi art market by the city in 1943; two of these are probably from a Nazi art trade institution that cannot be identified. The previous owners could not be established. - Three pictures come from the private collection of Hagemeister’s great-niece Margarethe Schweitzer (1907–1983) or his housekeeper Martha Spinde. Five losses were also recorded: two paintings that went missing during the war, one of which was bought in 1941 from Galerie Zinckgraf in Munich, and another almost certainly from an art association. One painting was considered an item lost during wartime but is today held in a private collection. Two post-war losses occurred as a result of misappropriation.

On 102 works by Theodor Hosemann and 36 wartime losses: - 16 works were classified as suspicious because they originated from the Nazi art market; the private owners signified by abbreviations could not be identified. - 85 works in the museum are of unknown origin. - Among the recorded 36 wartime losses are 15 verifiable acquisitions also from the Nazi art market.

On four paintings by Franz Skarbina, Eduard Grützner, F. A. Gerold and Brynolf Wennerberg: - The—unsuspicious—acquisition source for the work by Wennerberg was found. - The purchase or other form of acquisition of the two small-format paintings by Skarbina and Grützner could not be located, however. - A Jewish previous owner could be identified only for the painting by the unknown painter Gerold.

List of persons and institutions that are historically relevant to the project

PERSONS

Sievers, Wilhelm; 1938–1945 mayor of Brandenburg an der Havel

Posoreck, Wilhelm; Berlin, sculptor, head of the art collection of the Wredow Drawing School from 1928

Fraenger, Wilhelm; art historian, 1946 city councilor in Brandenburg an der Havel, head of office for education under mayor Fritz Lange

Krause, Paul; senior teacher, volunteer museum director before 1945, member of the Volkssturm national militia, either killed in action or missing in a prisoner-of-war camp

Neumann, Dr. Hans; municipal archivist before and after 1945, member of the St. Johannisloge “Friedrich zur Tugend”

Krause, Gustav (*1875); retired high school teacher, prehistorian, museologist, no party affiliation, museum director January 1, 1946 to November 14, 1949, organized the museum opening in April 1947

Munzlinger, Karl; high school teacher and painter, museum director November 15, 1949 to April 1954, probably left the GDR after the court case against him

INSTITUTIONS/ART DEALERS

Forwarding company Gustav Knauer, Berlin (no. 7999, art department)

Galerie del Vecchio, exhibition of art of all kinds and periods, Leipzig, Markgrafenstr. 1—as intermediary before 1933

Rudolph Lepke auction house, Berlin

Hans W. Lange auction house

Unsure: Hugo Helbing, Frankfurt am Main

C. G. Boerner auction institute, art and book antiquarian dealer, Universitätsstr. 26 I, Leipzig

Mensing & Fils (Frederik Muller & Co.), Amsterdam, Nieuwe Doelen Straat 16; auction house, owner: Mensing—intermediary 1940

Galerie Dr. W. A. Luz, Berlin (1941), Berlin W 62, Kurfürstenstr. 127

Reinhold Puppel antiquarian art dealer, Berlin W 15, Fasanenstraße 65, from 1944 in Quedlinburg

Rudolph Hönisch, book trader and antiquarian dealer, Leipzig C1, Hohestr. 18

Transparency

The researcher gave lectures both to specialist audiences and to interested members of the public, sometimes with her colleague Dr. Marlies Coburger:

2014

Annual conference of Brandenburg Association of Museums, Wandlitz April 14, 2014

“Provenienzforschung—auch ein Thema für kleinere Museen”, conference, Moses-Mendelssohn-Akademie Halberstadt/Behrend-Lehmann-Museum, Museumsverband Sachsen-Anhalt, Halberstadt November 10, 2014

Feature by Sigrid Hoff: “Provenienzforschung in Brandenburg” in the Zeitpunkte series, RBB Kulturradio, November 8, 2014

2015

Provenance research lecture on how German museums are handling Nazi-confiscated cultural goods, Freie Universität Berlin, International Center for Journalism, July 22, 2015

Presentation on provenance research Initial Check. Projects and experiences from Brandenburg 2012–2014, Weimar, spring meeting of Research Association for Provenance Research

Article by Maurice Wojach: Die Kunstdetektive, Märkische Allgemeine Zeitung, April 11/12, 2015

2016

Lecture at Austrian Federal Chancellery, Department II/4, Monument Protection and the Return of Cultural Objects, Provenance Research Commission at the Federal Chancellery, Vienna October 20, 2016

2017

The researcher helps the Museum im Frey-Haus prepare a Theodor Hosemann exhibition from September 29, 2017 to January 28, 2018. She gives the opening speech and, during the exhibition, a public lecture on November 9, 2017 about the Hosemann collection at the Museum im Frey-Haus and the provenance of selected works.