Swiss museum removes Van Gogh painting due to link to Nazi looted art

The Swiss museum Kunsthaus Zürich is removing five paintings following an investigation into their provenance as part of the new guidelines for the return of art looted by the Nazis. Among them are works by Vincent van Gogh.

The five paintings from the Emil Bührle Collection are also by Gustave Courbet, Claude Monet, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, and Paul Gauguin. They will be removed from the museum on June 20. Bührle was a German-born arms dealer who became wealthy during the Second World War. His private collection was frequently associated with looting by the Nazis.

The foundation had the paintings re-examined after the US State Department issued new guidelines for such inspections in March. According to the museum, the foundation is in talks with the descendants of the paintings' former owners to find a solution.

The Swiss museum had previously fallen into disrepute due to its exhibition of the Bührle collection. Last year, critics complained that the museum's attempt to contextualize the works did not pay enough attention to the fate of the former Jewish owners.

The foundation explained in a press release that it is now trying to consider the descendants' needs, as well as the interests of the public and the Kunsthaus Zürich.

The E. G. Bührle Collection Foundation was set up by the heirs of armaments industrialist and entrepreneur Emil G. Bührle to preserve significant parts of his art collection for the public and display them in Zurich. The 203 works, which have been on display at the Kunsthaus Zurich since 2021, include Impressionist collections with world-famous works by Van Gogh, Manet, Renoir, and Cézanne, among others.