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A woman looks at the painting "Foxes" by Franz Marc (1880-1916), which is currently in the possession of the city of Düsseldorf
Photo: Marcel Kusch / dpa
After years of looted art dispute, the city of Düsseldorf is returning the important painting "The Foxes" by Franz Marc to the heirs of the former Jewish owner.
The council voted unanimously in a closed session on Thursday for the restitution of the Expressionist painting from 1913. The city announced this in the evening.
The local parliament followed the recommendation of the Advisory Commission on Looted Art Cases.
After the final decision of the council, the city administration will prepare the return of the painting and discuss and coordinate the further procedure with the community of heirs, it said.
The Advisory Commission had voted with a two-thirds majority in favor of returning the picture to the descendants of the Jewish entrepreneur Kurt Grawi (1887-1944).
The cubist painting, valued at at least 14 million euros, is one of the top works of the Museum Kunstpalast in Düsseldorf.
After 1933, Grawi was subjected to considerable repression in Germany.
In 1938 he was imprisoned in the Sachsenhausen concentration camp for several weeks.
In 1939 he was able to emigrate to Chile.
In 1940 he sold the picture in New York.
In 1962 it was donated to the municipal art museum in Düsseldorf.
Return causes controversy
There had been a controversial debate about the return of the work, as the painting was only sold abroad after Grawi had emigrated.
Shortly before the vote, the World Jewish Congress had warned the city not to follow the recommendation of the commission.
In the opinion of the Advisory Commission, "Die Füchse" must be restituted, even if the sale was concluded outside the Nazi sphere of influence.
The sale in New York in 1940 was the direct consequence of his imprisonment in the concentration camp and Grawi's subsequent escape.
Looted art experts fear that the Commission's latest recommendation in the Grawi case could shift the previous standards of restitution.
“The foxes” could set a precedent so that cultural goods sold abroad would also be eligible for restitution in the future.
The Conference of Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs will also deal with the work of the Advisory Commission in May.
mjm / dpa