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First step towards abstraction…1910
Wassily Kandinsky’s (1866-1944) ‘Munau mit Kirche II’ art work dating back 1910 sold for $45M at Sotheby’s London in March sets a record for the artist, far from its 2017 previous $35M one.
The painting depicts the Bavarian village of Murnau and its church in a splendid burst of colour.
This sale marked 2 important points to highlight:
-1910 is a major turning point in time for abstraction vs figurative art led by W.Kandinsky through the particular use of colour as beautifully expressed in this canvas and the growing role of music that influenced all his production from there. This specific work is key as the first of a period where Kandinsky came to define abstract art .
-The painting was held by the nazis who had detained its owner in 1944, the founder of a textile company and art collector murdered at Aushwitz camp. The Stern family, owner and wife, were members of the intellectual elite including Albert Einsteinn and Franz Kafka.
Discovered in a museum in Eindhoven in the Netherlands, the painting was handed back to the owner’s great grandchildren following a 10 years legal action. The heirs will attribute part of the sale proceeds to search for the rest of their family’s vast art collection.
Since the ground rules of art works restitution were set in Washington 25 years ago, many legal actions were taken with the research contribution of major auction houses like Sotheby’s and Christie’s.
The art market that has shown a $67.8Bio worth figure in Art Basel UBS 2023 art market report will surely continue to be fuelled by such discoveries as a lot of looted art works is still to be unveiled.
In parallel, multiple legal actions are ongoing in the antiques segment to restaure the ownership of major heritage relics to their initial countries, but this move, on the contrary has reduced the appearance of such works on the market driven by increased caution with regards to provenance uncertainties.