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The heirs of a Jewish couple have brought a case against The Met, asserting that a Van Gogh canvas was stolen by the Nazis.

Case History

According to the lawsuit, Frederick and Hedwig Stern acquired the piece, titled Gathering Olives, in the mid-1930s. Just one year later, they were forced to flee their dwelling in the German city of Munich just before the Second World War.

The complaint argues that the museum, which acquired the masterpiece in the 1950s for a significant sum, ought to have been aware it was probably stolen property. The descendants are now seeking the repatriation of the canvas along with damages.

Following the war, this stolen artwork has been frequently and covertly traded, bought and sold in and through the city of New York, states the lawsuit.

The Sterns' Escape

The Stern family departed from Munich to California in the late 1930s with their offspring due to the oppressive Nazi regime. However, they were barred from transporting the painting, which was produced by the Dutch post-impressionist in the late 19th century.

Before the family's emigration, Nazi authorities designated the masterpiece as property of the state and banned the couple from exporting it. Following authorization from a regime representative, a trustee appointed by the regime auctioned the artwork on the Sterns' behalf. But, the proceeds from the transaction were held in a restricted account, which the Nazis later took.

Subsequent Ownership

Around 1948, or soon after, the canvas entered NYC and was purchased by a prominent figure, among the richest individuals in the US. Later, it was exchanged through a commercial outlet to the museum, which then passed it on to prominent shipowner the magnate and his wife, Elise, in 1972.

The Goulandris pair established the Goulandris Foundation in 1979, which manages a museum in Athens where the painting is currently on display.

Court Allegations

The institution and a living relative of Goulandris are listed as respondents. The legal action claims that the defendants and its affiliates have hidden and obscured the artwork's provenance and current place from the heirs.

Even now, the foundation continue to hide the circumstances the foundation came into possession of the Painting; the couple's ownership of the artwork from 1935 to 1938; and the facts that the Third Reich stole the canvas from the heirs, forced the couple into disposing of it via a Nazi-appointed agent, and seized the proceeds of the sale.

Previous Legal Action

The Stern heirs submitted a comparable case in the state of California in 2022, but it was rejected in 2024. An further action was also denied in recently.

Museum's Response

The lawsuit argues that the institution's buying of the piece was authorized by the museum's expert, the museum's curator of Old Masters and a renowned specialist on Nazi-era looted art. The institution and its expert knew or should have known that the masterpiece had probably been stolen by the Nazis.

The museum issued a statement that it is committed to its historical dedication to address issues related to WWII.

An official commented: Never during The Met's ownership of the painting was there any evidence that it had previously been owned to the family – actually, that knowledge did not become known until a long time after the painting left the Museum's collection.

The Met's sale of the Van Gogh met the institution's rigorous standards for deaccessioning – in particular, it was recorded that the piece was considered to be of lesser quality than other works of the same type in the collection. Even though The Met respectfully stands by its stance that this piece entered the inventory and was sold properly and well within all rules and regulations, the museum welcomes and will consider any additional details that comes to light.

Goulandris Statement

William Charron representing the Goulandris Foundation said: BEG is a highly prestigious organization in Greece. The attempt to sue and smear the institution and the defendants in the US upon misleadingly incomplete allegations was earlier rejected, twice. We are confident it will be once more.