Nazi Looted Art: Where We Are Now

By Mary Grace Nguyen

George Clooney, the director and lead actor of recently released film ‘Monuments Men’, has shed light on a crucial debate previously discussed only by academics that has now flooded the public forum. This debate questions the process of returning Nazi-era provenance art back to their rightful owners, which includes Jews, art dealers, churches and anyone other than Aryan descent according to Nazi ideology. Clooney’s interpretation of a true story set in 1945 is of a task force of artists and historians from Europe and America who sought to protect and return stolen art. This was estimated at a fifth of the world’s art (250,000 pieces), to the value of $2.5 billion at the end of the war. Today, the value is astounding. Some looted artworks were found undamaged and stored under salt mines or hidden away in homes of dealers and thieves. Unfortunately, other masterpieces were recovered tarnished under heaps of debris and rubble from the war.

Nausikaä El-Mecky, fellow at Humboldt University Berlin and specialist in censorship and attacks on art said: “Art took up a disproportionately large part of the Nazis’ political agenda...on the day the Nazis invaded Norway and Denmark, Hitler was not poring over military maps, but over albums of art from European museums.” Hitler had planned the construction of the ‘Führer museum,’ a large complex that would encase the ‘spoils of the world’ as part of the Nazis policy to cleanse the world of ‘Entartete Kunst’ (Degenerate Art) yet, in actual fact, they did not destroy much art. Some were even sold to pro-Nazi art-dealers including French, Swedish and German auction houses to finance the war. Additionally Hitler showcased his ‘Entartete Kunst’ exhibition of stolen art in 1937. It toured Germany as part of the Nazis strategy to influence the country’s mindset and consider their degrading views of Jews, the ‘Other’ and the modern art world. However as El-Mecky states, ‘Nazi art policy was so confused and self-contradictory that it had very little to do with ideology,’ but geopolitical power and control.

The ‘Monuments Men’ is a fascinating story that bears the truth of those who sacrificed their lives to salvage the remaining pieces of culture and history. This has sparked much speculation into where we are, 70 years later, in returning Nazi looted art. In 1998, at the Washington Conference under Bill Clinton’s administration, 44 governments across the world agreed to the ‘Principles of Nazi Confiscated Art’ as part of an international effort to reclaim looted art. More art pieces are being revived and it was only made public in November 2013, 18 months after its discovery, that an estimated 1400 modern art pieces, worth $1.35bn, were discovered in the Munich apartment of the 81-year-old son of German art dealer Hildebrand Gurlitt, who traded art during the Nazi period. This includes unknown works by Otto Dix, Marc Chagall and the oil painting ‘Sitting Woman’ by Henri Matisse. More recently, on February 11th 2014, there were reports of a dozen more pieces found in Cornelius Gurlitt’s Salzburg home including unnamed paintings by Monet, Picasso and Renoir that he claimed were not looted art but legitimate purchases made by his father. This leads onto the next stage of the restitution process whereby verification and identification of who the art belonged to, prior to its capture, are ascertained. Yet, we are confronted with another difficulty; where does true ownership begin? Does the art go to those who signed and bought it from an auction house or go as far back as family members of the artist?

 (Henri Matisse's 'Sitting Woman')

Gurlitt’s lawyer has recently published an online statement of his client’s position that says he has no legal obligation to return any “so-called looted art” and had no knowledge that they could be qualified as looted art. The statement also said: “He is prepared to review...fair solutions together with the claimants ... at most 3% of the...confiscated works,” which is a small amount compared to how much consideration Gurlitt is willing to give to German institutions. His last sentence reads as, “Cornelius Gurlitt will gladly review appropriate repurchase offers made by German museums.” 

In the German Civil Code there is a statute of limitations in which the right to looted art is within thirty years after the first incident of theft, which has long expired. However, due to the resurgence of recovered art, on 7th February 2014, a new German bill was drafted by Wilfried Bausback, who presented this to the German Parliament. The new bill says: “The goal of this proposed law is to correct the current, unsatisfactory legal situation and to allow owners of objects that have been wrongly taken from them the possibility of restitution of their property from mala fide owners.” As well as replacing the original statute of limitations policy, it is meant to speed up the process for the victims of looted art.

This new bill may be a solution in moving forward the process of provenance art but not everyone will be able to celebrate the merits if it is passed. For one, it can be viewed as a contemptuous stance towards current owners (such as Cornelius Gorlitt,) who have built relationships with the pieces of art which, if justifiably proven, have to give them back. Art restitution lawyers will see a drastic change in their practice, from once not being able to bring some of their cases to court and see the deeper repercussions for their diverse clientele. This may put individual owners at a disadvantage as they may not be able to afford the legal fees in contrast to their richer counterparts, namely the auction houses, art galleries and museums, which are government owned and sponsored by wealthy corporations.

Yet, what are these establishments doing to right the wrongs of the Nazis legacy? Many of them have clear guidelines they adhere to. The Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) announced that on January 10th, they were publishing large volumes of ‘Entartete Kunst’ from 1941 – 1942 that was donated by the widow of Vienna-born art dealer, Heinrich Robert Fischer in 1996. However, research has shown that the document is incomplete and incorrect in some parts. 

The British Museum showed their active participation in provenance art cases by saying they had ‘been carrying out research into the provenance of their collections... in response to a government initiative ... following an approach by Lord Janner of the Holocaust Educational Trust in 1997...Results of the research taking place in museums and galleries across the UK can be seen on the government Cultural Property Advice website.” This website is a good starting point for victims who want to search for their lost art themselves.

The Auction House, Christie’s, however, has a different stance on the issue. In a press statement, they say they are ‘taking steps to prevent stolen objects from circulating in the art market.’ They also said: “as an additional check, Christie’s catalogues are also submitted to the ‘Art Loss Register’ before each sale...’ Yet, all of these hopeful words end with an unsettling tone as they say, ‘We have a contractual right ...to withhold Lots which we know or believe to be the subject of a potential title claim.’

(Otto Dix art pieces found at Gurlitt's home)

When art was recovered at the end of the war, they were presented to ally governments of countries where they were looted such as France or Holland. Despite this post-war restitution method, history has proved that government owned museums, galleries and private collections have not been warm to the idea of willingly giving away art and have responded in a cold bureaucratic way. Thousands of looted art pieces are still missing which, some specialists suspect are found and undisclosed to the authorities.

Beate Schreiber, founder of the Facts and Files Research Center said, ‘Germany is using its federal structure as an excuse’... ‘They have very little sympathy and are making some scandalous decisions.’ An example of this is through their delayed announcement of the discoveries found at Gurlitt’s apartment 18 months after the incident, which Irene Lawford-Hinrichsen, author of ‘Five Hundred Years to Auschwitz’, called double criminality.’

Holocaust victims and those traumatised by the war were unwilling to discuss lost art post-1945, yet since the 90s there have been more books published and advances in art provenance research. Unfortunately, despite the Washington Conference, we still do not have an international arbitrator. Perhaps this is a political issue that should be raised to the Ministry of Culture or the Prime Minister depending on the country. Possibly the best person who can make a difference is Angela Merkel, the current Chancellor of Germany. Due to the complicated nature of Nazi-era provenance art, some establishments are not allowed to make an official statement. The Jewish Museum of London, Sotheby’s and the Austrian Cultural Forum were unable to contribute any statement to this article as there are potential risks of offending those affected; war victims, art dealers, government authorities, etc., and many further developments they were not updated on. We can only hope that more Gurlitt cases are exposed which, will eventually give political leaders the impetus and motivation to act.

"F*** IT "- A Contemporary Ode to the Rose Petal Martini

F*** IT ": A Contemporary Ode to the Rose Petal Martini
Mary Grace Nguyen (28.02.14)

Muddled thoughts, unclarified
Rugged hair knots, tangled
Paper abound, suffocated
Stomach pains that promote nervous breakdowns

Another fleeting escape from work office politics
Dramas, micromanagement and megalomaniacs
Heart-felt strings of the Blue Danube
Instil calm and tranquility
Must march on, must progress
Write more, read more, dream more

The Magic Flute: Review English National Opera Coliseum, London - December 2013

The Magic Flute: Review English National Opera Coliseum, London7 November - 7 December 2013Director: Simon McBurney

Last night at the ENO’s Coliseum theatre, the staging was unconventional where an elevated orchestra was raised from the pit. The protagonist, Tamino (Ben Johnson,) walks up to the flautist, Katie Bedford, while our clown king, Papageno (Roland Wood,) approaches Soojeong Joo, who plays the glockenspiel, to prove that these musicians are playing their magical instruments. With Simon McBurney, artistic director of ‘Complicite,’ his version of Mozart’s ‘The Magic Flute’ is not what you would expect.  His aim for the audience was to  “see and hear,” much like 1791, two years after the French Revolution, when it premiered at the Theatre auf der Wieden, in Vienna. This integrated orchestra was the vision McBurney wanted to emulate, where music and action could interact - yet, this might have been an oversight, as those sat in the front paid extra, but they could only see half the stage. 

In its original creation, the musical genius had many things to consider - the era it bore, the Enlightenment, and not forgetting, his participation in Freemasonry. This had influenced opera convert, McBurney, to spur him on to re-create a version just as radical as Mozart’s. 

In McBurney’s production, before the lights had gone down, an enthusiastic Gergely Madaras plunges straight into conducting the orchestra. By the stage, in a glass booth, an artist makes visible movements chalking up the words,  ’Act 1, Scene 1’ at a snail’s pace, projected for the audience’s entertainment, during a long overture. This tedious gimmick was best left out.

‘The Magic Flute’ is famous for Mozart’s grand musical wizardry and, more importantly, the Queen of the Night’s famous aria,  ’the vengeance of hell boils in my heart.’  As a frequent operagoer, I was looking forward to hearing the hard-to-sing coloratura music being sung by a mystical and revengeful mother as a defining point of the performance. Instead we received the soprano (Cornelia Götz,) dressed down as an old cripple who struggled to hit those money-making notes and get off her own seat or in this case, an actual wheel chair. Götz had sung as the Queen of the Night many times, internationally, and tonight was not her best performance, but she wasn’t alone. Bestial and filthy looking, Monostratos, (Brian Galliford) was out of tune too, and not reaching his peak.

Heavenly cherubic delights came to the rescue, nonetheless, from the three boys dressed like wrinkled Benjamin Buttons, (Alessio D'Andrea, Finlay A'Court, and Alex Karlsson) as wise guides to Tamino. They deserved applause, but it may have been past their bedtime, as they were not seen at the grand finale. James Creswell, our voice of justice and principle, through Sarastro, was the antithesis of Götz and, whose caliber of voice was an astounding presence, hitting those basal tones well.

Johnson, a Ricky Gervais look-a-like, had distinctive vocals most representative when expressing love for Pamina, (Devon Guthrie) ‘this enchantingly beautiful effigy,’ a stranger that he gathers from a projection of her face on a collection of white A4 sheets, is the girl of his dreams. 

Unfortunately Gutherie’s voice was merely adequate, lacking the sparks needed for a lead role. Still, the performance managed to redeem itself with the cheeky couple, Papageno (Wood) and Papagena (Mary Bevan,) who proved to be best-suited. Bevan had unravelled from a covered up elder to a young cute minx, whose talented voice, in a duet with Wood, celebrated the idea of making babies in their song, “Pa,  Pa,  Pa…”  Wood had an uncanny resemblance to the TV bird catcher, Bill Oddie, who brought depth to his developed baritone role. His northern accent and woeful loneliness added a fine comedic pantomime attribute required to balance out a serious storyline.

Finn Ross, the video designer, and set designer, Michael Levine, should be mentioned for their exaggerated paper birds, unorthodox sets and technological visuals of immersing water and fire images against a suspended cast in the air. 

McBurney is an actor, writer and director, which explains his theatrical canon for ‘Complicite.’  Yet, at first, he did not like opera, and said, it was,  “obscure” and  “pointless,” until he was encouraged to by Pierre Audi, artistic director of London's Almeida. Having done his due diligence for ‘The Magic Flute’ beforehand, in an interview on Radio 4, he said he examined Mozart’s thought processes such as, “how is humanity going to evolve?  We have just had the French Revolution and there’s buckets of blood everywhere.”  Luckily, there was no bloodshed tonight, but a multiplicity of theatrical intrigue piled onto a delightful ensemble of high spirited music, engaging visual effects, and a diversity of animated cast members. Regrettably, there was nothing awe-inspiring to praise here. ‘The Magic Flute’ requires electrifying operatic voices and it seems that someone forgot to tell McBurney this, which is a big shame.

Birkbeck celebrates Chinese New Year

 

On Friday night, Birkbeck students at Malet place were welcomed by members from the Chinese society into a loud room filled with people who were curious about the celebration of Chinese New Year.

There were red paper decorations and lanterns hanging from the ceiling with a friendly atmosphere of various activities taking place. On one side of the room there were students getting their hands dirty in flour and vegetable corn filling, learning how to make Chinese dumplings for the first time. Next to them was a Chinese calligraphy section where others were taught the stroke order for writing the characters for ‘horse’ and ‘fortune.’  Another section was dedicated to the art of paper cutting (jianzhi) and on the right was the drinking corner, for those who appreciate Chinese alcohol. Tsingtao was in abundance and some took to the Chinese spirits better than others. There were spring rolls and pancakes available too, so that everyone was fully immersed in Chinese culture. At 9pm, the grand finale took place with the ‘Imperial College London Dance Team’ performing a Chinese Lion Dance. This was a spectacular performance of exuberant colours from two boisterous and skilful lions with Chinese acoustics and vibrant drums in the background.

This occasion was to mark the year of the ‘Wooden Horse’ according to the Chinese zodiac, based on a twelve-year cycle. If you were born on 1966, 1978 or 1990, your zodiac sign was the ‘Horse,’ which meant that 2014 would be a year of conflict but, conversely, many positive surprises as well.  Those born in the year of the ‘Horse’ were described as fast, energetic, and animated. Based on Chinese astrology, they thrive in social surroundings but enjoy being free and independent as well. In addition, they are competitive and, like horses, are heroic and victorious in battle. They move fast from one destination to the next, coupled with their ability to think quickly and make decisions on the go. 

 

The president of the Chinese Society, Zheng Chia said: “This year is the coming of the ‘Horse’, which, will bring a lot of success to 2014.” His vice president, Yibing Sun said: “the ‘Horse’ is strong and powerful, which is why 2014 shall also be a strong and powerful year for everyone.” Sarah Whitaker from Birbeck’s International Office helped organise the event in collaboration with the Chinese Society and partner university, the Beijing Institute. She said: “This is a great event taking place during International Week, and is the first time Birkbeck is celebrating Chinese New Year ever.”

Birkbeck is an international hub of interesting students who want to learn about other cultures which is something this event has clearly highlighted. The year of the ‘Horse’ is about galloping towards a prosperous 2014. In work and play, Chinese students will look at this ‘Horse,’ as a symbol of luck, for examinations and essays, perhaps, but let us hope it gives Birkbeck societies encouragement to organise more fun events just like these. 

 

La Bayadère: An array of synchronised white tutus, salvaged by the stunning Spanish heart, Tamara Rojo

La Bayadère (the Temple Dancer) like Swan Lake, is a masterpiece bought to life by musical composer Ludwig Minkus and Marius Petipa’s French and Russian inspired choreography, however, it lacks the exposure and necessary praise that it truly deserves. Soviet-Russian-born prima ballerina Natalia Makarova managed to captivate the American audience for the first time back in 1974.

One of Makarova's repertoires was staged at The Royal Ballet in 2009, which was screened this week by Francesca Secola from Birkbeck’s Spanish and Portuguese Speaking society. She hosted this open evening to devote time to those who enjoy classical ballet at the college. There were a small group of us from different courses who attended this rare occasion - the majority had not seen the ballet before.  

The cast for the ballet included a Latin mix of collaborations underpinning the ethnic connection which Francesca wanted to share. Cuban born, then Royal Ballet principal, Carlos Acosta, played the charming Solor; he has danced numerous times at the Royal Ballet as a highly accomplished talent. Argentinian ballerina Marianela Nuñez led as the devilish rival Gamzatti who steals Solor’s heart with her divine, seductive looks and dancing ravishingly poised yet, with Acosta there seemed to be minimal symmetry Acosta’s portrayal of a confused protagonist, spiraling hopelessly with both Bayadèr and Gamzatti in an ménage a trois scene, did not leave his strength and agility to question though.

Pier Luigi Samaritani’s colourful Indian scenery and Yolanda Sonnabend’s eastern set design added a unique flavor to the classic ballet, not forgetting the small springy bronze idol played by another latino dancer Jose Martin. Yet, it was the Spanish heroine Tamara Rojo that was the star of the stage who proved to be a better match for Acosta, with her natural, seemingly effortless and seamless turns. 

Rojo’s performance was exciting to watch. It's hard for the audience to not marvel at her flexible, sculpted body with her passion for dance. She danced as if it were her last. In the mysterious Kingdom of Shades, twenty-four delicately synchronized dancers concentrated on their arabesque penché, pacing slowly in a harmonious trail of shining tutus, to a dreamy stage of heart-felt strings in the background. 

Makarova once said the, “…corps de ballet is the leading role… Yet, the corps

must always work together as a unified whole.” This contrasts with the beginning acts’ vitality, variety of post-colonial Indian hues and a collection of gypsy scarfs and high-jumping savagery choreography. Viewing this extravagant work through a DVD, allows the audience to zoom in on techniques that a live performance would not have access to.

After the screening the classroom was lit with content students all saying the words, ‘that was enjoyable!’ Secola is a student ambassador for the Royal Opera House, who promotes their productions to Birkbeck. This screening is the first of many to take place at the university. The intention is to provide an awareness of how accessible the so-called elitist and unaffordable performances at the Royal Opera House are, which can be attainable for a measly tenner.

Please visit their website for more information on ‘Student Standby’ discounted tickets.

Click here for more information of Student Standby, goodies, discount tickets at the Royal Opera House website. Sign up to their e-mail list to get the best deals. 

Review: THE WOLF OF WALLSTREET ****

By Mary Grace Nguyen

I wish I was as rich as a trader, that got high and satisfied at the same time.

There are so many things to love about the Wolf of Wall Street, not only for Leonardo Di Caprio's handsome face as millionaire trader Jordan Belfort, not only for his loud mouth crony and confidante Donnie Azzoff' (Jonah Hill) and the endless humour that got you cracking up in hysterics but, for the endorphins and drive for money, drugs and sex with a lot of high class hookers. It is a parallel universe to the 95% of people who will end up watching this movie, because only a small cohort of actual traders will have the time, while the rest of them will be too busy making that money or not bother to view this lavish explosion of gluttony party mayhem to which they probably endure day in, day out. Matthew Macconaughey  plays a cameo role as one of Jordan's first mentors (Mark Hanna,) and tells him that there are two factors that keep him going in the business, 'cocaine and hookers', after having screamed at a bunch of wall street money mongers. 'Let's f***!', is what he screams when it turns 9.30am on the ticket clock - the time when they start picking up the phones and making those millions of dollars.

Unusual incentives and comradery perks in the office take place once the market closed in forms of throwing dwarfs on velcro dart boards, prostitutes and strippers running around naked (out of nowhere,) half dressed marching bands trumpeting and banging away on the drums and a female colleague agreeing to $10,000 in exchange for a shaven head Oh, and let’s not forget that there was a lot of coke and alcohol around to feed a small island. It's almost too ridiculous to be realistic but, according to Belfort himself, this ridiculousness was how far it got and for Martin Scorsese, the setting and scenes bear fruit - money made these liars richer. 

The misogyny is also too gruesome from Jordon's constant need to steer away from his home life and resume hookerville and infidelity that led to him meeting his second wife (Naomi Lapaglia,) played by the gorgeous Margot Robbie. With such phrases as the girls being 'bald from the eyebrows down,' to the physical violence he inflicts on her when she first lets him know that she wants a divorce, you can see how the corruption slowly festers in his head within the past 5 years from when he created his criminal enterprise. 

The movie is electrifying with beautiful unaffordable homes, unfathomable mansions, dreamy backgrounds of Manhattan, Switzerland and Italy. All you need is a yacht with Nicola's name on it to feel like you have made it. Leonardo rocks up in Armani suits and a pearl white Lamborghini Countach, which is loaded with Belford’s calibre and sense of style, let alone his pocket. The film's focus on a spoilt plot follows with mini snippets where he would look at the camera and tell us point black that nothing he was doing was legal, giving off a wariness and skewed perception that Belfort was aware of his own paranoias of being found out by the FBI.

Most memorable scenes that topped if off, for me, was the moment Belfort and Donnie started to pile on the Lemmon pills. As soon as Jordan had reached the cerebral palsy stage it was a painful stomach that got you giggling childishly, hugging your tummy and hissing. From the crawling into his soon-to-be trashed toy car and getting into it with great difficulty, both of their inabilities to communicate to each other, the twists and turns of the telephone wires and Donnie almost dying from ham stuck in his throat soon resuscitated by Pop-Eye spinach and cocaine fiend induced Jordan. Scorsese achieved taking the edge of drugs by allowing it to be comical as the movie, Hangover, me thinks.

Any professional that has to close deals with clients, attend sales meeting, listen to motivational speeches and aim to win hard earned commission, will empathise with this pressure 'boiler room' environment. It is a reminder that with much greed and money, there is a downfall to be had with all this happiness if not monitored and traced. In one of Jordan's last speeches to his employees he says, 'I want to help you get rid of your problems, pick up the phone and get rich.' This is the a poignant phrase that resonates everywhere because time is precious in a cut throat money grabbing world, and for all it is worth, this is just a biography of one of the many historical anti-heroes who get founded out for trying to corrupt the system and thinking they can get away with it. 

**** (4 STAR)