The Emil Bührle Collection, on permanent loan to the Kunsthaus Zürich since autumn 2021, is the subject of controversial discussions regarding provenance research, "looted works of art", "cultural assets stolen following Nazi persecution", the relationship between Emil Georg Bührle and the Zürcher Kunstgesellschaft as well as Switzerland's position in the Second World War. The Kunsthaus embodies the subject of the debate like no other place.
“We carefully analyze the concrete implications of our social role as a museum,” says Ann Demeester, director of the Kunsthaus Zürich. «Especially in complex times, I believe we are able to offer a lot, stimulating people to reflect and transmitting positive messages. At the same time, we want to promote debate, without backing down from controversial issues. For this reason we believe it is important to develop together a new approach to the Bührle Collection, in which critical questioning arouses curiosity and thanks to which history can reconnect to the present."
After the initial presentation, which was carried out by the Sammlung EG Bührle Foundation as owner with the aim of providing an overview of the collection, the Kunsthaus Zürich can now independently take over the curatorial direction of the permanent loan. The new management of the Kunsthaus immediately seized this opportunity by designing a new exhibition with the aim of placing the Emil Bührle Collection in a broader sociopolitical context.
In addition to the art, the context and the concrete destinies of the previous owners of the works presented in the exhibition, the aim is to create a space for reflection and active dialogue with the public. In this sense, the exhibition intends to show how historical contexts and art history are intrinsically linked. In this context, the ongoing debate in Switzerland on the provenance of works and the search for fair and just solutions for cultural assets stolen following Nazi persecution will be addressed, as well as the decades-long relationship between the Zürcher Kunstgesellschaft (the association that manages the Kunsthaus Zurich) and Emil Bührle.
The team responsible for the project, led by director Ann Demeester and collection curator Dr. Philippe Büttner, is characterized by an interdisciplinary composition. Art historians such as Franziska Lentzsch (responsible for implementation), Ioana Jimborean (responsible for the resonance space and scenography), the scholar Joachim Sieber, specialized in provenance research, and the person responsible for artistic mediation, Dr. Sibyl, are involved. Kraft. Furthermore, an external advisory board composed of experts from different disciplines provides critical support in the preparatory phase. The scientific committee includes Dr. Nikola Doll, head of research on provenance at the Kunstmuseum Bern, Muriel Gerstner, set designer and managing member of the Omanut association - Forum for Jewish art and culture, Prof. Sarah Kenderdine, head of the Laboratory of Experimental Museology and the pavilions of the Federal Institute of Technology at the University of Lausanne, Prof. Dr. Matthieu Leimgruber, associate professor of modern history at the University of Zurich, Ass. Prof. Dr. Stefanie Mahr, professor of modern European, Swiss and Jewish history within the PRIMA program of the SNF, Thomas Meyer, writer, and Prof. Angeli Sachs, former professor of curatorial studies at the Zürcher Hochschule der Künste. Alongside the above-mentioned personalities, the Kunsthaus's discussions continue with further experts and stakeholders, in order to delve deeper into the different points of view on the exhibition concept.
To coincide with the opening of the new exhibition of the Emil Bührle Collection, a book will be published focusing on the provenance of particularly significant works of art in relation to "art, context, war and conflict". The publication delves in particular into the destinies of the people to whom the paintings belonged before Emil Bührle acquired them.
