appendix ANALYSIS AND CONSIDERATIONS ON THE PRODUCTIOn OF MONDRIAN DURING THE SECOND PARISIAN PERIOD (1920 - 1938) IN RELATION TO THE DISAPPEARED WORKS The present Chapter in “Appendix” was developed once the entire research on the Missing Works and the related Reconstruction’s Study was completed. This further analysis stems mainly from the fact that for many works considered to have disappeared, some doubts have emerged regarding the Provenance. All the works presented in this study have been cataloged as “disappeared”, but in reality some of these are works that certainly no longer exist because they are “destroyed”, while the others are actually “vanished”. Overall, Mondrian’s disappeared works are 28. 25 are present in the “Catalog Raisonnè”, 3 have been cataloged in the “New Acquisitions”. Two works belong to the naturalistic period, the other 26 works are those dealt with in this study. In the analysis of this chapter, 24 works are treated, as the remaining two are not relevant. These are: B178 Stage Set Model created by Mondrian for “l’éphemère est éternel” for Michel Seuphor, as a work destroyed by Mondrian himself; B179 Cover design for the Polish translation of “Le Néo-Plasticism”, as a non-pictorial work. The 24 missing works are divided into two categories: 6 works “destroyed” for various reasons, fires, war events; 18 works are those really “disappeared”, whose traces are lost in different moments and for completely mysterious causes. As we will see, these 18 works fall in a precise period from 1923 to 1927. Period in which Mondrian has sent practically all his production (30 works out of 40), to Germany. These works were sold to only two references: Sophie Küppers and the Kunstausstellung Kühl Gallery in Dresden. We will see, that for many of the missing works, a decisive moment was the exhibition “Der Stuhl” of 1929 in Frankfurt. On the occasion of this exhibition, the works were available in the Kunstausstellung Kühl Gallery. We will also see, that a good part of “disappeared works”, in addition to other “existing works”, after a long period of disappearance, are “miraculously reappeared” in various locations near Collectors, Galleries and Museums. At the end of this further analysis, a Diagram was also produced that visually traces the path of each work up to its final destination, obviously as far as it was possible to find the information.
ANALYSIS AND CONSIDERATIONS ON THE PRODUCTION OF MONDRIAN DURING THE SECOND PARISIAN PERIOD (1920 - 1938), IN RELATION TO THE DISAPPEARED WORKS 1911/1914 These are the years in which the evolutionary process that will lead Mondrian to the creation of Neoplasticism begins. In 1911 he resides in Amsterdam and this is one of the works produced:
B4 - The grey Tree - 1911 / Haags Gemeentemuseum
Between 1912 and 1914 he resides in Paris. Residence that will abandon with the beginning of the First World War, in fact, in 1914. In these years he realizes a series of works that accentuate the transformation more and more. Some examples:
B6 - Landscape with Trees - 1912 / Haags Gemeentemuseum
B28 - Compositie 2 - 1913 / Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum
B18 - Still Life with Gingerpot 2 - 1912 / Haags Gemeentemuseum
B35 - Composition n.VII - 1913 / Guggenheim Museum 234
1914/1919 In these years, during the residence in Holland, the final transformation takes place. Until 1917 he made a series of works that brought him closer and closer to the goal. Some examples:
B78 - Pier and Ocean 5: “Zee en Sterrenlucht” (Sea and Starry Sky) - 1915 / MoMA
B80 - Compositie - 1916 Guggenheim Museum
B84 - Compositie in Kleur A - 1917
B90 - Composition with Colour Planes 4 - 1917
Rijksmuseum Kröller-Müller
Private Collection on loan to the Kröller-Müller
But it is at a precise historical moment that the definitive transformation takes place. That is to say in the year 1918 which coincides exactly with the end of the Great War. Almost to sanction a moment in which end the sufferings of a devastating conflict that saw a good part of humanity participate and from which we can try to start a “New Life”. Thus was born the first composition in which the philosophy of Neoplasticism appears definitively realized. A real “tattoo” on the history of art, in memory of the end of the First World War.
B92 - Composition with Colour Planes and Grey Lines 1 - 1918 / Private Collection 235
1920/1938 Shortly after the end of the war, Mondrian returned to Paris in 1920, where he remained until September 1938. It is in this “second homeland” that almost all his production of the “abstract” period is concentrated. The historical context, from the political, social and economic point of view of these 18 years is extremely complex. The Great War ended November 11, 1918, left ruins and destruction everywhere. Inevitably social and economic conditions are difficult for many. In Germany feelings of humiliation, anger and resentment began to spread following the conditions imposed by the Treaty of Versailles in 1919 (acceptance by Germany to declare itself solely responsible for the outbreak of the First World War, the definitive loss of some territories and the demilitarization of others, the payment of heavy reimbursements, the unilateral disarmament of Germany and severe military restrictions). Added to this are the social tensions of a nationalist and Marxist nature, the great global depression of the 1930s caused by the collapse of Wall Street in 1929, hyperinflation and many other components of a political nature. In this contest it will once again be Germany to be the architect of history, especially during the years 1933 to 1945. Many voters sought an outlet for their frustrations and began to choose far-left and far-right parties, supporting extremists just like the German National Socialist Workers Party. In the period from the immediate after war until 1933, therefore, Germany was the scene of a decisive historical process that led to the rise of National Socialism, culminating with the appointment of Adolf Hitler to Chancellor in January 1933, after the elections of July 1932. This event quickly led Germany to a totalitarian dictatorship. Until the “Nazi madness” began the Second World War on September 1, 1939. Conflict that will end on September 2, 1945, with the fall of the Nazi regime and yet another defeat of Germany. All the atrocious Nazi persecutions carried out by Hitler, even before being elected Chancellor in 1933 and prolonged in the following years, induced Mondrian to “escape” from Paris as early as September 1938, before the very beginning of the Second World War. . After an intermediate stage of about two years (1938/39) in London, he reached New York, where he remained until his death February 1, 1944. Among the many atrocities and horrors made by Hitler, there was also the well-known campaign against degenerate art “Entartete Kunst” of 1937, from which even Mondrian was not spared with the confiscation of some of his works (for more in ‘33 his texts ended up in the “great stake” of Berlin on 10 May). Probably this act was the last boost that led him to leave Paris to reach his friend Harry Holtzman in New York. He was a very important person for Mondrian, not only a fraternal friend, but also a supporter in economic terms and decisive for his definitive consecration. Precisely for this Mondrian named him his only heir.
Mondrian standing with Harry Holtzman - Holtzman’s Studio - 1941 New York
Mondrian standing with Harry Holtzman - Holtzman’s Studio - 1941 New York
A very nice photo of Hermann Landshoff of 1942, portrays Mondrian, in his years in New York, in the company of “Surrealists”, in the balcony windows of the town house of Peggy Guggenheim. From left to right: Leonora Carrington, Fernand Léger, John Ferren, Berenice Abbott, Amédée Ozenfant, Peggy Guggenheim, Frederick Kiesler, Jimmy Ernst, Stanley William Hayter, Marcel Duchamp, Kurt Seligmann, Piet Mondrian, Andre Breton, Max Ernst. Provvisional identity card issued to Piet Mondrian after his arrival in
Via Deutsche Fotothek
New York, 3 October 1940
© Münchner Stadtmuseum / München 236
In the historical context just mentioned, the period of maximum production of Mondrian in abstract art is concentrated. Paris 1920/1938. In these years, as we will see later, one of the main points of reference was Germany, particularly in the years 1922 to 1927. With two predominant figures: Sophie Küppers and the Kunstausstellung Kühl Gallery in Dresden. Analyzing the production of these years, Mondrian has produced a total of 167 works, distributed as follows: (N.B. from here on, for practicality, the works will be indicated with the code of the “Catalog Raisonnè” only)
1920 – from B104 to B114 10 works excluded B113 as “First State” of 1921 – from B115 to B132 17 works excluded B121 as “First State” of 1922 – from B133 to B148 16 works excluded B133 as “First State” of B140 as “First State” of including B180 ascertained year B163 ascertained year 1923 – from B149 to B150 2 works 1924 – only B151 0 works excluded B151 as “First State” of 1925 – from B152 to B166 14 works excluded B163 ascertained year 1926 – from B167 to B181 14 works excluded B180 ascertained year 1927 – from B182 to B200 19 works 1928 – from B201 to B205 5 works 1929 – from B206 to B216 11 works 1930 – from B217 to B225 9 works 1931 – from B226 to B229 4 works 1932 – from B230 to B237 8 works 1933 – from B238 to B241 4 works 1934 – from B242 to B252 10 works excluded B252 as “First State” of 1935 – from B253 to B261 7 works excluded B257 as “First State” of B260 as “First State” of 1936 – from B262 to B269 8 works 1937 – from B270 to B281 6 works excluded B274 as “First State” of B275 as “First State” of B276 as “First State” of B279 as “First State” of B280 as “First State” of B281 as “First State” of 1938 – from B282 to B290 3 works excluded B283 as “First State” of (B290 will remain unfinished) B285 as “First State” of B286 as “First State” of B287 as “First State” of B288 as “First State” of B289 as “First State” of
B153 B154 B155 B157 1922, ex 1926 1922, ex 1925 B156 1922 1922
B258 B306 B307 B310 B320 B311 B308 B309 B312 B321 B313 B314 B316 B317 B303
The first fact that appears to be evident is that the average Mondrian production for each year can not be considered high. What someone might seem to be a marginal chronological reference is, on the contrary, a highly emblematic fact. In an artistic scenario that often expresses itself with huge productions necessary to satisfy the bulimic appetites of the market, a report like that of Mondrian attests the goodness of the commitment of an author evidently interested in the study, the quality and the constant research of the Perfect Harmony . Then there will certainly be other reasons more closely related to issues relevant to those years: the post-war period, the economic problems to be faced, and so on. In fact, there are years where there are peaks in production: 1921, 1922, 1925, 1926, 1927; as well as the vertiginous falls: 1923, 1924, 1928, 1931, 1933. In particular, in ‘23 and ‘24 the production was practically nil. Among the less prolific years were not included in 1937 and 1938, because, although in the count appear 9 works in total, in fact the works were prepared in all 21 and if it were not “escaped” from Paris taking them with you, would have certainly finished and maybe he would have realized others too.
237
Now, keeping aside these purely chronological considerations (on which we can perhaps go back to other contexts), we want to concentrate more attention on the years in which the “disappeared works” included in the Reconstruction Studio fall. Also in relation to their history, meaning the path they had before disappearing definitively. Then, the missing works are summarized, with an indication of the path and the final destiny. N.B .: As repeatedly stated, all data are taken from official sources such as the “Catalog Raisonnè” and the website of the RKD Netherlands Institute for Art History. The main route is indicated in the origin: the initial owner and the last one. In some cases, when relevant, also the intermediate one. In addition, if necessary, references to the exhibits are also included, which provide a trace until the moment of disappearance.
WORK B93
YEAR 1918
PROVENANCE
EXHIBITS
1918 - H. P. Bremmer
FINAL DESTINY 1944 - DESTROYED BY FIRE
1928/1944 - Helene Brückmann-Kröller B94
1918
B99a
1919
No information
B118
1921
1921/1944 - Wim and Tonia Stieltjes
(HOLLAND)
1918 - H. P. Bremmer
1944 - DESTROYED BY FIRE
1928/1944 - Helene Brückmann-Kröller
(HOLLAND) No information DISAPPEARED 1944 -DESTROYED BY FIRE
Parigi B119
1921
(FRANCE)
1921/1944 - Wim and Tonia Stieltjes
1944 - DESTROYED BY FIRE
Parigi B148
1922
(FRANCE)
No information
No information DISAPPEARED (presumed in GERMANY)
B149
1923
1924 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1937 - CONFISCATED BY THE NAZIS
1924 - Provinzialmuseum / Hannover
DISAPPEARED (GERMANY)
B157
1925
1925 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1925 - Mondrian - Galleria Kunstausstellung
since 1925 no information
(?) 1925 - Ida Bienert / Dresden
Kühl / Dresden
DISAPPEARED
1925 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1925 - Mondrian - Galleria Kunstausstellung
since 1929 no information
1927 - given to Kunstausstellung Kühl Gal-
Kühl / Dresden
DISAPPEARED
lery / Dresden by Sophie Küppers
1926 - Lissitzky Mondrian Ray / Munich
(GERMANY) B158
1925
(GERMANY)
1927 - Wege und Richtungen / Mannheim (?) 1929 - Der Stuhl / Frankfurt B161
1925
1925 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1925 - Mondrian - Galleria Kunstausstellung
since 1926 no information
(?) 1925 - Ida Bienert / Dresda
Kühl / Dresden
DISAPPEARED
1926 - Internazionale Kunstausstellung Kühl
(GERMANY)
und Kühn / Dresden B164
1925
1925 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1925 - Mondrian - Galleria Kunstausstellung
since 1926 no information
Kühl / Dresden
DISAPPEARED
(?) 1926 - Lissitzky Mondrian Ray / Munich B169
1926
(GERMANY)
1926 - consigned to Kunstausstellung Kühl
1926 - Internazionale Kunstausstellung Kühl
since 1929 no information
Gallery / Dresden
und Kühn / Dresden
DISAPPEARED
1927 - Wege und Richtungen / Mannheim
(GERMANY)
(?) 1929 - Der Stuhl / Frankfurt B171
1926
1926 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1926 - Internazionale Kunstausstellung Kühl
since 1929 no information
und Kühn / Dresden
DISAPPEARED
1927 - Wege und Richtungen / Mannheim
(GERMANY)
(?) 1929 - Der Stuhl / Frankfurt B174
1926
1926 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1937 - CONFISCATED BY THE NAZIS
since 1926 on loan to the Provinzialmu-
DISAPPEARED
seum / Hannover B175
1926 (?)
(GERMANY)
No information
No information DISAPPEARED (presumed in GERMANY)
238
WORK B177
YEAR 1926
PROVENANCE
EXHIBITS
FINAL DESTINY
1926 - consigned to Katherine S. Dreier /
Note: Katherine S. Dreier visited Mondrian in
since 1927 no information
New York
Paris on 7 April 1926
DISAPPEARED
1924 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1925 - Mondrian - Galleria Kunstausstellung
since 1929 no information
1927 - given to Kunstausstellung Kühl Gal-
Kühl / Dresden
DISAPPEARED
lery / Dresden by Sophie Küppers
1927 - Wege und Richtungen / Mannheim
1927 -sold by Katherine S. Dreier B180
1922
(USA ?)
(GERMANY)
(?) 1929 - Der Stuhl / Frankfurt B181
1926
No information
No information DISAPPEARED (presumed in GERMANY)
B184
1927
1927 - consigned to Kunstausstellung Kühl
1929 - Der Stuhl / Frankfurt
Gallery / Dresden
since 1929 no information DISAPPEARED (GERMANY)
B186
1927
1927 - consigned to Kunstausstellung Kühl
1929 - Der Stuhl / Frankfurt
since 1929 no information
Gallery / Dresden
DISAPPEARED
1928 - Museum Folkwang / Hessen
1937 - CONFISCATED BY THE NAZIS
purchased turough Sophie Küppers
DISAPPEARED
(GERMANY) B202
1928
(GERMANY) B242
1934
(?) 1934 - Emil Friedrich and Clara Friedrich-
DESTROYED BY FIRE during trasport by
Jezrel / Zurigo
car in 2nd World War (SWITZERLAND)
B245
1934/36
(?) 1936 - consigned to Valentin Dudensing
last exhibition
since 1958 no information
Gallery / New York
1957 - Mondrian / New York
DESTROYED BY FIRE (?)
Note: it is a work left unfinished
since 1934/35 no information
(?) 1958 - Paul Bittencourt / São Paulo B247
1934
No information
(BRAZIL) DISAPPEARED
IN TOTAL 24 works 6 DESTROYED works 18 DISAPPEARED works • • • • • •
The first thing that immediately emerges is that almost all works classified as “disappeared” find this destiny in Germany - 15 out of 18. The largest number of these are works produced between 1922 and 1927, with a maximum concentration in the years 1925 and 1926. The previous chronological analysis shows that it is precisely the years of maximum production: 1921 (17 works), 1922 (16 works), 1925 (14 works), 1926 (14 works) and 1927 (19 works). With the exception of 3 works - B149, B174, B202 - confiscated by the Nazis in 1937, all the others are lost between 1926 and 1929. Almost all the works that have disappeared in Germany (15) have referred to two figures: Sophie Küppers and the Kunstausstellung Kühl Gallery in Dresden. These are works that have followed roughly the same exhibition path and almost all “disappear” after the exhibition Der Stuhl of 1929 in Frankfurt.
Now, tightening the circle, the previous list is transcribed again, focusing the period 1922 - 1927, including the other “existing” works that arrived in Germany in the same time frame (see also pages 48/50 and 51, where it is reproduced the sketch of Mondrian of the so-called “Dresden Notes” which depicts the works sent to Sophie Küppers in 1925).
239
WORK B148
YEAR 1922
PROVENANCE
EXHIBITS
No information
FINAL DESTINY No information DISAPPEARED (presumed in GERMANY)
B149
1923
1924 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1937 - CONFISCATED BY THE NAZIS
1924 - Provinzialmuseum / Hannover
DISAPPEARED (GERMANY)
B153
1925
1925 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1925 - Mondrian - Galleria Kunstausstellung
Currently
1927 - given to Kunstausstellung Kühl Gal-
Kühl / Dresden
since 1993 - Beyeler Collection / Basel
lery / Dresden by Sophie Küppers
1926 - Lissitzky Mondrian Ray / Munich
1929/1987 - Werner M. Moser and Silva
1927 - Wege und Richtungen / Mannheim
Moser-Schindler, through Mart Stam /
1929 - Der Stuhl / Frankfurt
Zurich
... etc.
... etc. B154
1925
1925 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1925 - Mondrian - Galleria Kunstausstellung
Currently
1926/1950 - Friedrich Bienert / Dresden
Kühl / Dresden
since 1983 - Private Collection
... ect.
1926 - Internazionale Kunstausstellung Kühl und Kühn / Dresden ... etc.
B155
1925
1925 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1925 - Mondrian - Galleria Kunstausstellung
Currently
1927 - given to Kunstausstellung Kühl Gal-
Kühl / Dresden
since 1946 - Washington D.C. the Phillips
lery / Dresden by Sophie Küppers
1926 - Lissitzky Mondrian Ray / Munich
Collection
.........
1927 - Wege und Richtungen / Mannheim
The work REAPPEARS in 1942 as a property
1929 - Der Stuhl / Frankfurt
of VALENTIN GALLERY / New York
......... The work REAPPEARS in 1942 in the exhibition “Mondrian” in New York
B156
B157
1925
1925
1925 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1925 - Mondrian - Galleria Kunstausstellung
Currently
1926/1950-51 - Friedrich Bienert / Dresden
Kühl / Dresden
since 1971 - Washington D.C. National
... ect.
... etc.
Gallery of Art
1925 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1925 - Mondrian - Galleria Kunstausstellung
since 1925 no information
(?) 1925 - Ida Bienert / Dresden
Kühl / Dresden
DISAPPEARED
1925 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1925 - Mondrian - Galleria Kunstausstellung
since 1929 no information
1927 - given to Kunstausstellung Kühl Gal-
Kühl / Dresden
DISAPPEARED
lery / Dresden by Sophie Küppers
1926 - Lissitzky Mondrian Ray / Munich
(GERMANY) B158
1925
(GERMANY)
1927 - Wege und Richtungen / Mannheim (?) 1929 - Der Stuhl / Frankfurt B159
B160
B161
1925
1925
1925
1925 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1925 - Mondrian - Galleria Kunstausstellung
Currently
1927 - given to Kunstausstellung Kühl Gal-
Kühl / Dresden
since 1950 - Kaiser Wilhelm Museum /
lery / Dresden by Sophie Küppers
1926 - Lissitzky Mondrian Ray / Munich
Krefeld
.........
1927 - Wege und Richtungen / Mannheim
The work REAPPEARS in 1950 at the KAISER
1929 - Der Stuhl / Frankfurt
WILHELM MUSEUM in Krefeld
.........
1925 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1925 - Mondrian - Galleria Kunstausstellung
Currently
1927 - given to Kunstausstellung Kühl Gal-
Kühl / Dresden
since 1977 - Private Collection
lery / Dresden by Sophie Küppers
1926 - Lissitzky Mondrian Ray / Munich
.........
1927 - Wege und Richtungen / Mannheim
The work REAPPEARS in 1950 at the KAISER
1929 - Der Stuhl / Frankfurt
WILHELM MUSEUM in Krefeld
.........
1925 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1925 - Mondrian - Galleria Kunstausstellung
since 1926 no information
(?) 1925 - Ida Bienert / Dresden
Kühl / Dresden
DISAPPEARED
1926 - Internazionale Kunstausstellung Kühl
(GERMANY)
und Kühn / Dresden B162
1925
1925 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1925 - Mondrian - Galleria Kunstausstellung
Currently
1927 - given to Kunstausstellung Kühl Gal-
Kühl / Dresden
since 1950 - Kaiser Wilhelm Museum /
lery / Dresden by Sophie Küppers
1926 - Lissitzky Mondrian Ray / Munich
Krefeld
.........
1927 - Wege und Richtungen / Mannheim
The work REAPPEARS in 1950 at the KAISER
1929 - Der Stuhl / Frankfurt
WILHELM MUSEUM in Krefeld
.........
240
WORK B163
B164
YEAR 1922 (‘25)
1925
PROVENANCE
EXHIBITS
FINAL DESTINY
1925 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1925 - Mondrian - Galleria Kunstausstellung
Currently
1927 - given to Kunstausstellung Kühl Gal-
Kühl / Dresden
since 1950 - Kaiser Wilhelm Museum /
lery / Dresden by Sophie Küppers
1926 - Lissitzky Mondrian Ray / Munich
Krefeld
.........
1927 - Wege und Richtungen / Mannheim
The work REAPPEARS in 1950 at the KAISER
1929 - Der Stuhl / Frankfurt
WILHELM MUSEUM in Krefeld
.........
1925 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1925 - Mondrian - Galleria Kunstausstellung
since 1926 no information
Kühl / Dresden
DISAPPEARED
(?) 1926 - Lissitzky Mondrian Ray / Munich B165
1925
(GERMANY)
1926/1950 - Friedrich Bienert / Dresden
Currently
through Sophie Küppers
since 1956 - Kunsthaus Zürich (gift of
.........
Vereinigung Zürcher Kunstfreunde)
The work REAPPEARS in 1955/56 - Sidney Janis Gallery / New York B169
1926
1926 - consigned to Kunstausstellung Kühl
1926 - Internazionale Kunstausstellung Kühl
since 1929 no information
Gallery / Dresden
und Kühn / Dresden
DISAPPEARED
1927 - Wege und Richtungen / Mannheim
(GERMANY)
(?) 1929 - Der Stuhl / Frankfurt B170
1926
1926 - consigned to Kunstausstellung Kühl
1927 - Wege und Richtungen / Mannheim
Currently
Gallery / Dresden
1929 - Der Stuhl / Frankfurt
since 2004 - Nahmad Collection /
.........
.........
Switzerland
1926 - Internazionale Kunstausstellung Kühl
since 1929 no information
und Kühn / Dresden
DISAPPEARED
The work REAPPEARS in 1944/60 - Mondrian Estate - Harry Holtzman / New York ... etc. B171
1926
1926 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1927 - Wege und Richtungen / Mannheim
(GERMANY)
(?) 1929 - Der Stuhl / Frankfurt B172
1926
1926 - consigned to Kunstausstellung Kühl
1927 - Wege und Richtungen / Mannheim
Currently
Gallery / Dresden
(?) 1929 - Der Stuhl / Frankfurt
since 1950 - Kaiser Wilhelm Museum /
.........
.........
Krefeld
The work REAPPEARS in 1950 at the KAISER WILHELM MUSEUM in Krefeld B173
1926
(?) 1926 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
Currently
1937 - Provinzialmuseum / Hannover
since 1952 - Philadelphia Museum of Art
1937 - CONFISCATED by the NAZIS 1939 - Karl Buchholz / Berlin ... etc. B174
1926
1926 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1937 - CONFISCATED BY THE NAZIS
since 1926 on loan to the Provinzialmu-
DISAPPEARED
seum / Hannover B175
1926 (?)
(GERMANY)
No information
No information DISAPPEARED (presumed in GERMANY)
B177
1926
1926 - consigned to Katherine S. Dreier /
Note: Katherine S. Dreier visited Mondrian in
since 1927 no information
New York
Paris on 7 April 1926
DISAPPEARED
1924 - consigned to Sophie Küppers
1925 - Mondrian - Galleria Kunstausstellung
since 1929 no information
1927 - given to Kunstausstellung Kühl Gal-
Kühl / Dresden
DISAPPEARED
lery / Dresden by Sophie Küppers
1927 - Wege und Richtungen / Mannheim
1927 - sold by Katherine S. Dreier B180
1922
(USA ?)
(GERMANY)
(?) 1929 - Der Stuhl / Frankfurt B181
1926
No information
No information DISAPPEARED (presumed in GERMANY)
B184
1927
1927 - consigned to Kunstausstellung Kühl
1929 - Der Stuhl / Frankfurt
Gallery / Dresden
since 1929 no information DISAPPEARED (GERMANY)
241
WORK B185
YEAR 1927
PROVENANCE
EXHIBITS
FINAL DESTINY
1927 - consigned to Kunstausstellung Kühl
1927 - De Klomp / Paris
Currently
Gallery / Dresden, after the first exhibition
1929 - Der Stuhl / Frankfurt
since 1960 - Private Collection
in Paris - De Klomp
.........
......... The work REAPPEARS in 1949 c/o NORMAN LASKEY in New York ... etc. B186
1927
1927 - consigned to Kunstausstellung Kühl
1929 - Der Stuhl / Frankfurt
Gallery / Dresden
since 1929 no information DISAPPEARED (GERMANY)
B187
1927
1927 - consigned to Kunstausstellung Kühl
1927 - De Klomp / Paris
Currently
Gallery / Dresden, after the first exhibition
1929 - Der Stuhl / Frankfurt
since 1990 - Annely Juda Fine Art /
in Paris - De Klomp
.........
London
1929/1990 - Werner M. Moser and Silva Moser-Schindler / Zurich - The work was PURCHASED during exhibition DER STUHL B202
1928
1928 - Museum Folkwang / Essen
1937 - CONFISCATED BY THE NAZIS
purchased turough Sophie Küppers
DISAPPEARED (GERMANY)
SUMMARY OF MAIN DATA • From the end of 1922 to the middle of 1927 (from B148 to B187), Mondrian produced 40 works + B202 (1928), for a total of 41 WORKS. • With this last list all the works belonging to the same period were analyzed and it turned out that 30 works were sent to Germany. In practice 75% of the entire production. • Among these 30 works, it appears that 15 have “disappeared” + B202, for a total of 16 DISAPPEARED WORKS. • From the analysis carried out on the “Catalog Raisonnè”, it appears that all the works sent to Germany, Mondrian, sold them through Sophie Küppers, who at the time collaborated with the Kunstausstellung Kühl Gallery in Dresden. DATA ANALYSIS AND CONSIDERATIONS • In the reconstruction of the route of 16 works, it appears that the crucial issue was the exhibition “Der Stuhl” of 1929 in Frankfurt. From this moment, 14 works disappear permanently or disappear for a long time, only to “reappear” mysteriously. To these must be added 2 works, B153 and B187, sold, on the occasion of the same exhibition, to Werner M. Moser and Silva Moser-Schindler. • There are 6 missing works (B158, B169, B171, B180, B184, B186), while those disappeared for a long period are 8 (B155, B159, B160, B162, B163, B170, B172, B185). • In terms of permanently disappeared works, there are 6 more that Mondrian has sold in Germany and passed through Sophie Küppers and the Kunstausstellung Kühl Gallery in Dresden (B149, B157, B161, B164, B174, B202). Among these works, 3 disappeared after being confiscated by the Nazis (B149, B174, B202). • Then there are 4 other works that have disappeared definitively, for which the information is extremely scarce and does not allow any evaluation (B148, B175, B177, B181). • In total, the works definitively disappeared, are 16. The history of all these works is extremely intricate and untangling the skein is not at all simple. The first consideration is that from the “Catalog Raisonnè” and from other official sources, it appears that Mondrian, the works destined to Germany, have all sold them. Therefore, from that moment on, those in possession of it had the freedom to do what they wanted, to put it in extremely simple terms. In the absurd world, in an attack of madness, it could also destroy them or eat them! Nevertheless, since they are works of art of extreme value, not only commercial but also historical, they are not exempt from the moral and material responsibility of the end of the works themselves. Even if you are legitimately owners of a work, you can not act shady or inconsiderate. These are works whose certain “provenance” is an essential element to demonstrate full legal ownership, even more so if it is an institution as a museum. In fact, among the works that have disappeared for a long time, there are 5 that have mysteriously appeared at the Kaiser Wilhelm Museum in Krefeld (B159, B160, B162, B163, B172), one of these then sold and since 1977 is located in a Private Collection (B160) - Fig. 1 But we’ll talk about this later. 242
Fig. 1 B160 - Tableau n.VIII with Yellow, Red, Black and Blue - 1925
Now, there is no doubt that in this whole affair, the Kunstausstellung Kühl Gallery in Dresden and, marginally, Sophie Küppers played a fundamental role. As mentioned, the crucial issue was the “Der Stuhl” Exhibition, from 15 February to 15 March 1929, in Frankfurt (Fig.2 and Fig.3) and at that moment the works were fully available in the K.K Gallery. This is an extremely crucial moment, because a vacuum is created here. An emptiness lasted for several years, for the temporarily disappeared works, and an emptiness that still remains for those permanently disappeared. At this point it is necessary a minimum of historical classification, even if of a large maximum.
Fig. 2 The journal DAS NEUE FRANKFURT - In n.1 January 1929, the exhibition “Der Stuhl” is announced to be held from February 15th to March 15th and on the walls there will be works by Piet Mondrian
Fig. 3 The journal DAS NEUE FRANKFURT - In n.4 April 1929: review of the exhibition “Der Sthul” with an image depicting some works by Mondrian (image already reproduced on Page 29-39-4041). The works are, from left to right, B184, B185, B186, B160, B162, B159. The missing works are B184 and B186, in the Reconstruction Studio on p. 38. The article for the review of the exhibition “El Lissitzky” at the Landesmuseum Hannover - “Cabinet of the Abstract” also appears. There are two other works by Mondrian, B149 and B174 sold to Sophie Kuppers, also works that disappeared after the confiscation of the Nazis of 1937. In the Reconstruction Studio on p. 26.
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From the above list, it can be seen that the missing works and those temporarily disappeared revolve around the years 1926 - 1929. The Germany of this period, was a nation that was going through a radical process of transformation, where the opposing political forces and popular sentiment, were gradually leading to the establishment of National Socialism. There were certainly strong tensions, but the “demon” had not yet ascended the throne. It will take place on January 30th, 1933. Instead, there was another difficult condition, not only for Germany, but global. And it was the great depression caused by the collapse of Wall Street on the famous black Tuesday, also called “Big Crash”, of October 29, 1929. The early 30s, then, were certainly marked by great economic difficulties. Even the beginning of the Second World War was far from arriving (September 1, 1939). And the Nazi repression against culture will be implemented starting from 1933. The K.K. Gallery, which still exists, has a long tradition that has lasted 94 years Founded in January 1924 by Heinrich Kühl, he has always supported emerging and contemporary art. Many artists, then young, made their debut with this gallery: Glöckner, Hans Hartung, Karl Otto Götz; then there were Braque, Delaunay, Léger, Picasso and, indeed, Mondrian. In addition to El Lissitzky and his wife Sophie Küppers who collaborated with the Gallery. Not only that, on several occasions Heinrich Kühl found himself supporting the artists also from an economic point of view, through the purchase of their works. When the Nazi repression of “degenerate” art began in 1933, Heinrich Kühl did not hesitate to exhibit artists belonging to this category. In short, a gallery whose history contrasts a lot with the “disappearance” of the works, if we want to evaluate the “disappearance” as a shady mechanism. Whereas, instead, it may have been a way to save them and keep them away from other events. But, as mentioned, both the Nazi repression and the war are still far to come, so the “disappearance of the works” in the years 1927/1929 can not be attributed to these events. Moreover, some of these works “reappear” after many years, immediately after the end of the Second World War. So, after the Frankfurt exhibition, where did these works end? Why have they been hidden for a long time? And the others that are categorized as definitively disappeared, where are they? Do they still exist? We could also evaluate the possibility that the works were used in a sort of “other market” on unofficial channels to cope with economic shortcomings. But this hypothesis, according to historical texts, would not be reflected in the standard of living that existed in Dresden in those years. A city considered a jewel and, right at the end of the 1920s, it had a high industrial level with centuries-old traditions in many sectors. In 1927, for example, there were 7988 companies, which employed over 170,000 people. Many banks were also present: to name one, for example the Dresden Bank, founded in 1872, was of great importance. In the final analysis, therefore, one could imagine that the works were used as a sort of “exchange goods”. But in this case, perhaps, finding answers to the dynamics that determined this “use” could be impossible. Probably the right key to reading is hidden behind other contexts. It should also be noted that among the “temporarily” works that disappeared after the “Der Stuhl” exhibition, there are three others that long ago “reappeared” over the ocean, in New York: B155, reappeared in 1942 as property of the Valentin Gallery; B170, reappeared in 1944 at the Mondrian Estate - Harry Holtzman; B185, reappeared in 1949 at Norman Laskey. As Joosten himself writes in the “Catalog Raisonnè” about the work B170 (Fig. 4), it is very unlikely to be a work salvaged by Mondrian himself before leaving Paris in September 1938. It seems very probable, however, that been recovered during his last years in New York. Given the label of the Kunstausstellung Kühl in Dresden, the painting must have been taken by “someone from Germany”. He also adds that this work could be the “small canvas” sold in Germany, mentioned by Mondrian in a letter to JJP Oud of 29 April 1927. (Fig. 5) Also regarding B155, he writes that the work was most likely sold in Mannheim or at the K.K Gallery. and then brought to the USA where she was sold again, either directly or through an agent, to Mrs Valentine Dudensing (Fig. 6). And again, regarding the work B185, he writes that it could be the “old canvas” sold to a “German sculptress” in Germany, a canvas that then reached the US before, or in any case during, World War II (Fig. 7). Work for which Lissitzky and Küppers unfortunately thought of an artist price! (Fig. 8). Basically there is no doubt that around these works and the other mysteriously disappeared, a very complicated and unclear story rotates, with many conditional. One thing is absolutely certain though: these are works that Mondrian has certainly sold. This is to introduce the next comment.
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Fig. 4
Fig. 5
B170 - Komposition II with Red - 1926
Fig. 6
Fig. 7 B155 - Tableau n,III with Red, Black, Yellow, Blue and Grey - 1925
Fig. 8
B185 - Composition with Blue, Yellow and Red - 1927 245
Mondrian’s Heirs and Kaiser Wilhelm Museum Recently, on March 4, 2018, an article appeared in the New York Times, signed by Catherine Hickley (news then taken by many other newspapers all over the world), which illustrates the story involving the heirs of Mondrian and the Kaiser Wilhelm Museum in Krefeld. As highlighted above, the question is about the legitimacy of the museum to the possession of a series of works, mysteriously “reappeared” in 1950 in their collection - Fig. 9 (B159, B162, B163, B172). In essence, the heirs of Mondrian claim these works and request their return. The legal aspect is taken care of by a lawyer expert in missing works, Gunnar Schnabel (Berlin) and by an expert in provenance, Monika Tatzkow (German Lost Art Foundation). In addition, the former German Minister of Culture, Michael Naumann, took to the defense of the heirs. The experts, Schnabel and Tatzkow, have spent the last three years tracing the paintings up to the days of their creation in the 1920s. The claim of the heirs is mainly based on the fact that the KWM of Krefeld has no evidence to prove ownership of the works and that these have been “given” or “loaned” by Mondrian, who, fleeing from Paris for the imminent war conflict , he could not recover them before leaving. Now, without going into legal issues, there are two unclear basic aspects in this whole story. The first. The works in question, as well as all the other “disappeared” or “existing” they are, Mondrian has not given away, much less lent. They have all been “sold”. This data is easily deduced from the “Catalog Raisonnè” and, among other things, it was summarized in a wonderful new Biography of Mondrian of 2017, written by Hans Janssen (Fig. 10). As you can see all the paintings in the previous list of the missing works are listed and for each one the amounts collected by Mondrian are indicated. The second one. While mentioning the crucial event of the exhibition “Der Stuhl” in Frankfurt, there is not the slightest mention of the Kunstausstellung Kühl Gallery in Dresden, which, as seen previously, is a key figure in the whole story of the missing works. The Dresden Gallery and Sophie Küppers were the owners of these works. Avoiding and omitting any kind of comment, you can at least say that there are many inconsistencies! The question must be more complicated than it seems.
Fig. 9
B159 - Tableau n.VII with, Blue, Yel-
B162 - Tableau n.X with Yellow,
B163 - Tableau n.XI with Red, Black,
B172 - Komposition IV with
low, Black and Red - 1925
Black, Red and Blue - 1925
Blue and Yellow - 1925
Red - 1926
MUSEUM HAUS HERMANN LANGE (Mies Van Der Rohe) - KAISER WILHELM MUSEUM Small “Zimmer der Dame” showroom - Photo Erich Schmidt 1955 (approximately) Image taken from the review “Quadrum” n.2 November 1956 pag.187 the paintings at the Kaiser Wilhelm Museum
There are two works by Mondrian - from left to right B172 and B159
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New Biography of Mondrian edited by Hans Janssen Since Mondrian has disappeared, many biographies have been published. In most cases, these are didactic publications. Certainly it is an artist, so the biographical knot are his works. But the analysis, very often stuck in rigid academic patterns, leads to a vision of the artistic path that ultimately makes a completely distorted image of Mondrian’s life. This of Hanssen, unlike the others, more than a biography is a revelation. Finally someone speaks of Mondrian first as a man and then, as a consequence, as an artist. The works that every artist (true) produces, are nothing but the materialization of his spirit, his soul, his personality. Hanssen captures the right key, does not try to interpret Mondrian, but rather “understands” it, becomes almost a clone, enters his soul and gives us back his true essence. With this essence, then, can illustrate the works of Mondrian as if Mondrian himself to talk about it. The result is that reading this book becomes compelling, hypnotic, you can not stop. For each chapter a new revelation, a succession of surprises. Finally the true Man appears even before the Artist. And finally we discover that Mondrian is not that “character” created by art in all these years. He is not a solitary closed monk in his monastery. Almost in all the pictures where Mondrian is portrayed, he appears with a very serious expression, but it is a deception. His works are a “deception”, a “trap”, where many have fallen. We often read about rigid grids, patterns, mathematics, relationships with the golden ratio, and so on. Almost like a science. The truth is that his works are pure expression of joy, of musical rhythms, of dances, of intuitions without calculations, of perfect harmonies that are the fruit of his essence and not of a desk study. With Hanssen we discover that in fact Mondrian was a man who loved the company of bohemian artists, the love and money to spend on nightlife and women. Hanssen’s work was based on a careful and timely search for documents, letters, testimonies, concrete facts, that allowed him to reconstruct step by step the entire life of Mondrian .. Read this book, is equivalent to making a wonderful journey through landscapes and scenarios never seen before. Even the image, rather than inflated, of the poor artist and with great difficulties of livelihood, is completely disassembled. A passage from the Hanssen Biography clearly reveals this. Based on specific data, he writes […] The myth of lack of money is constant, but it is not right. Mondrian could very well give vent to his disappointment, and in all his correspondence he did so with all his love and effort, especially when it came to money. From the moment his young friend, the Antwerp artist and graphic designer Michel Seuphor (pseudonym of Fernand Berckelaers) published the first biography of Mondriaan in 1956, it is customary to describe the financial situation of Mondriaan from 1921 onwards. The story goes that since 1920 he has constantly had money problems, he has not sold anything, and has had to repeatedly paint flowers every three months to pay the rent of 350 francs and for the most basic means of support. From his correspondence with Van Doesburg, it does not seem different. The sweet stories of “picking grapes in the south”, “becoming a farmer in the Var”, “collecting melons in Utrecht” are a recurring theme in his letters, collected by well-meaning biographers ... A simple search through all the letters and all documents, provides a fairly accurate documentation of what Mondrian earned between the spring of 1921 and December 1926. These are substantial amounts, which yield an average annual income of more than 3,500 francs. With a studio rent of about 1,400 francs, it was not a bad income. An artist like Fernand Léger, in those years, was able to collect an average of 600 francs per painting, compared to Mondrian’s 300-400 francs. […]
Fig. 10 An excerpt from the New Biography of Mondrian edited by Hans Janssen PIET MONDRIAAN - EEN NIEUWE KUNST VOOR EEN ONGEKEND LEVEN (Piet Mondrian - A New Art for a Life Unknown) “Here is a statement of Mondrian’s income between 1921 and 1927, based on what Mondrian himself declared in the letters about the sale of his works (F = French franc, RM = Reichmark) and on the basis of data that can be obtained from “Catalog Raisonnè”.
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The “Der Stuhl” exhibition in Frankfurt - 1929 We have seen how the “Der Stuhl” exhibition in Frankfurt was the crucial moment in which the history of many of the works on display changed course. Below are summarized all the works that took part in this exhibition and their final destiny.
B153 - provenance KUNSTAUSSTELLUNG KÜHL GALLERY / Dresden sold to Werner N. Moser and Silva Moser-Schindler during the exhibition Der Stuhl since 1993 BEYELER COLLECTION / Basel B155 - provenance KUNSTAUSSTELLUNG KÜHL GALLERY / Dresden last exhibition Der Stuhl the work REAPPEARS in 1942 at the VALENTIN GALLERY / New York B158 - provenance KUNSTAUSSTELLUNG KÜHL GALLERY / Dresden last exhibition Der Stuhl DISAPPEARED B159 - provenance KUNSTAUSSTELLUNG KÜHL GALLERY / Dresden last exhibition Der Stuhl the work REAPPEARS in 1950 at the KAISER WILHELM MUSEUM / Krefeld B160 - provenance KUNSTAUSSTELLUNG KÜHL GALLERY / Dresden last exhibition Der Stuhl the work REAPPEARS in 1950 at the KAISER WILHELM MUSEUM / Krefeld - since 1977 Private Collection B162 - provenance KUNSTAUSSTELLUNG KÜHL GALLERY / Dresden last exhibition Der Stuhl the work REAPPEARS in 1950 at the KAISER WILHELM MUSEUM / Krefeld B163 - provenance KUNSTAUSSTELLUNG KÜHL GALLERY / Dresden last exhibition Der Stuhl the work REAPPEARS in 1950 at the KAISER WILHELM MUSEUM / Krefeld B169 - provenance KUNSTAUSSTELLUNG KÜHL GALLERY / Dresden last exhibition Der Stuhl DISAPPEARED B170 - provenance KUNSTAUSSTELLUNG KÜHL GALLERY / Dresden last exhibition Der Stuhl the work REAPPEARS in 1942 at the PIET MONDRIAN ESTATE - HARRY HOLTZMAN / New York B171 - provenance SOPHIE KÜPPERS / Hannover - Dresden last exhibition Der Stuhl DISAPPEARED B172 - provenance KUNSTAUSSTELLUNG KÜHL GALLERY / Dresden last exhibition Der Stuhl the work REAPPEARS in 1950 at the KAISER WILHELM MUSEUM / Krefeld B180 - provenance KUNSTAUSSTELLUNG KÜHL GALLERY / Dresden last exhibition Der Stuhl DISAPPEARED B184 - provenance KUNSTAUSSTELLUNG KÜHL GALLERY / Dresden last exhibition Der Stuhl DISAPPEARED B185 - provenance KUNSTAUSSTELLUNG KÜHL GALLERY / Dresden last exhibition Der Stuhl the work REAPPEARS in 1949 c/o NORMAN LASKEY / New York B186 - provenance KUNSTAUSSTELLUNG KÜHL GALLERY / Dresden last exhibition Der Stuhl DISAPPEARED B187 - provenance KUNSTAUSSTELLUNG KÜHL GALLERY / Dresden sold to Werner N. Moser and Silva Moser-Schindler during the exhibition Der Stuhl since 1990 ANNRLY JUDA FINE ART / London 248
As you can see some works remain classified as “DISAPPEARED”, others, however, “REAPPEAR” after a long time. Moreover, from the reconstruction of the provenance present in the “Catalog Raisonnè”, after this exhibition the works are no longer present in other exhibitions, traces are lost. Suddenly 8 works “come back to life” in a precise moment. This means that after the exhibit Der Stuhl, the works must have remained in the availability of someone and evidently preserved them by saving them from subsequent events. Recall that the Gallery K.K. he was in possession of all the works on display. Dresden certainly suffered one of the worst “criminal” acts and useless massacre in the history of the Second World War. A real record of inhumanity that, of course, is added to the much more serious and gigantic one produced by Nazi madness. (Humanity must never forget the Holocaust). This happens exactly between 13 and 15 February 1945. Even in 1944 it suffered a bombing, but in comparison it was much milder. Official sources report that 24,866 houses in the center were destroyed out of a total of 28,410. In practice, an area of about 15 square kilometers has been razed to the ground. Of the 222,000 apartments in the city, 75,000 were completely destroyed, 11,000 severely damaged, 7,000 damaged, 81,000 slightly damaged. In practice starting from the center, the intensity of the damage decreases as you go towards the periphery. The K.K. Gallery it had its headquarters in the center of Dresden in Kleine Brüdergasse 21, so it was completely destroyed. But they also had a rented apartment in the “Outer Neustadt” which is located north of the center on the opposite bank of the Elbe. Perhaps this house has not been completely destroyed, it could be among those more distant from the center that has reported serious damages or lighter damages. Now, we have 8 works that “reappear” at different times: B155 in 1942 in New York B170 in 1944 in New York B185 in 1949 in New York B159, B160, B162, B163, B150 in 1950 in Krefeld (Germany) It can therefore be assumed that the works of the “Der Stuhl” exhibition were kept in the K.K Gallery apartment. in the “Outer Neustadt”, or, in any case, somewhere that has preserved them since the 1945 bombing. It must be said, however, that the capital of Saxony, until the autumn of 1944, had remained completely alien to the tragedy of the war. So, at least until this date the works had to be undamaged. Therefore, if 8 works have “reappeared”, it can be assumed that the other works of the “Der Stuhl” exhibition have not been destroyed, but could still be “alive” somewhere. But above all, to introduce the next paragraph, even B169 may have survived the Second World War unscathed and, perhaps, as happened for B155 and B170 that arrived in New York “during” the war, it may have been moved in the same period 1942 / 1944 or even earlier.
DRESDA after the bombing of 13-15 February 1945 Photo Richard Peter - Via Deutsche Fotothek
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B169 – KOMPOSITION I: Lozenge with Three Lines In the chapter dealing with the “reconstruction” of this work (starting from page 94), we have seen how it is not actually a missing work, but was used to “hide” or “replace” B229, adding a series of changes. The “modified” work, known as the B229 Composition Lozenge with Two Lines, is currently held at the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam. The entire reconstruction was then summarized in an ordered form starting on page.118. At the end of the summary, questions were asked: how did B169 arrive in the Netherlands? Who is responsible for its transformation? What happened to the work that Mondrian made for Hilversum? Why was it replaced with B169? It is not easy to find an answer to all the questions, for some, by the way, this is not the appropriate place. One can only make hypotheses. In any case, with this last chapter in the appendix, it has been shown that heavy doubts weigh heavily on all the missing works, while it has been useful to provide further proof that the reconstruction of B169 can certainly be considered founded. Now, even if in an extremely synthetic way, it is necessary to have a minimum historical overview of Holland during the Second World War. In 1939, Britain and France declared war on Germany. The Netherlands, as they did in the Great War, declared themselves neutral. On 10 May 1940, the Germans began the campaign of occupation of the Netherlands, conducted quickly, according to the dictates of the lightning war. Completing the conquest of the country in just five days. The German invasion was part of the Fall Gelb plan, the West attack wanted by Hitler once the campaign in Poland ended. Violating the neutrality of the Netherlands and Belgium, with the aim of circumventing the Maginot Line and bringing the Wehrmacht to conquer France and also avoiding possible seaborne attacks from Great Britain. Despite the strenuous resistance of the Dutch to Afsluitdijk, Grebberberg, Zeeland and The Hague, as stated, in a few days they surrendered. The Dutch could have exploited a formidable defense weapon, but they did not put it into action to save a great number of lives. Destroying the dams and flooding the polders, Holland would become an island, making the German invasion much more complex. But with this weapon, while containing the main cities on an island, it would have flooded many surrounding villages. The Royal Family managed to flee to London, followed shortly by members of the government and on May 17, 1940, after undergoing a partial bombing of Rotterdam and Middelburg, the surrender was declared. Unlike other countries, the Netherlands suffered very minor damage. Instead, they were subject to a strict occupation regime. During the first period, there was a certain acquiescence on the part of the Dutch who came to collaborate with the Nazis. Mostly dictated by the natural aversion to communism, which they considered, for the most part, worse than Nazism. In the plans of Hitler the Netherlands would have had to receive favorable treatment, since its inhabitants belonged to the so-called Heimat, that is the lineage that grouped all the peoples of the German ethnic group. The one that suffered most from Holland was a ferocious persecution of the Jewish Community, with the limitation of their rights and the creation of the Joodsche Raad, the “Jewish councils”, on the model of the Judenräte made in Poland. In this the SS were supported by the weer-afteling, the parliamentary formations of the NSB, the National Socialist Party of the Netherlands. The iron persecution of the Jews, however, changed the attitude of the population, which became progressively more and more hostile and threatened to result in open revolt after the closure of the Jewish quarter of Amsterdam and the capture of over 400 people occurred on February 22, 1941. How to forget Anna Frank! The Holocaust in the Netherlands was one of the most terrible, of the 140,000 Jews living in these lands, only 30,000 survived the war. During the whole period of occupation, there was a progressive growth of the Dutch resistance front, which led the population to rebel. The first symptoms were seen with the strike of February 1941. The resistance groups became decisive starting from 1944, through the activity of counterintelligence, very useful to the Allied Forces. In short, both the popular sentiment and the Resistance forces made a major contribution to the advance of the Allies and starting September 17, 1944, after the return of Queen Wilhelmina on March 13, 1945, after the last ferocious battle of Delfzijl of 23 April/2 May ‘45, finally on May 4, 1945, the German admiral Von Friedeburg expressed the intent to undersign the surrender of the German forces stationed in the Netherlands. The next day, the German commander Johannes Blaskowitz was summoned to negotiate the capitulation at the Hotel de Wereld in Wageningen. The next day Blaskowitz and his interlocutors found themselves in an abandoned farmhouse in Nude, where the surrender was signed. That of Nazi Germany will arrive shortly thereafter, May 7, 1945 with the signing of a first treaty in Reims and May 8 with the signing, in Berlin, of the second treaty of surrender wanted by Stalin.
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Returning to “our” B169 canvas, we try to answer some of the questions asked above. The historical scenario of World War II in the Netherlands was such as to allow easy transportation from Dresden (or other German location) to Amsterdam or Hilversum. Always considering this scenario, the work that Mondrian created for Hilversum in 1931, certainly has not been destroyed by the war. Most likely it is still “hidden” somewhere. KOMPOSITION I: Lozenge with Three Lines (B169), arrived in Hilversum or Amsterdam in an extremely simple way and its “transformation” could have been carried out both in these places, as before starting from Germany. The most probable period in which all this happens, are the years 1941 - 1944. The reasons that led to the “replacement” of the work created for Hilversum, can be two: • the first, during the period of Nazi occupation, was “stolen” by some German officer and the City Council, to avoid such an important deficiency being a highly representative work (let’s not forget that it was purchased by Het Nederlandsch Kunstverbond to donate it to the City of Hilversum), has found a way to replace it using B169; • the second, which leads to the same result, is that the work of Hilversum has been subtracted from “another subject”. Identifying the “responsible” is not the task of this study, we can only say that the subjects involved are many. Now we can only hope that with this further analysis, the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, or those for him, seriously consider the possibility of carrying out the additional tests recommended at the end of the reconstruction, referred to on page 124.
B169 - Komposition I - Lozenge with Three Lines - 1926
B229 - Lozenge, composition with two Lines - 1931
scomparso / disappeared
stedelijk museum - amsterdam
31,5
62,9
31,5
62,9
112
112
X-RAY
THE SIGNATURE IS IN
30,5
30,5
THE WRONG PLACE
olio su tela / oil on canvas - 80 x 80 (diadonal 112)
olio su tela / oil on canvas - 80 x 80 (diadonal 112)
UPDATE 18.05.2018 SEE A MAJOR UPDATE ON PAG.125-A
28.05.2018 FURTHER UPDATE ON PAG.125-L
31.05.2018 NEW RECONSTRUCTION AND FURTHER EVALUATIONS ON PAG.135-1
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CONCLUSIONS The analysis developed in this last chapter, aimed essentially at providing further proof that the “reconstruction” of the work KOMPOSITION I: Lozenge with Three Lines, can be considered founded. However, this is only one more element, because in itself the “reconstruction” has presented evidence of absolute merit. With this analysis, step by step the circle has been narrowed, until you get to focus on the exhibition “Der Stuhl” in Frankfurt in 1929: a decisive event for the disappearance of a series of works. The result was based on one of the many possible scenarios, ie on the hypothesis that the works, after the exhibition Der Stuhl, returned to Dresden and remained available in the Kunstausstellung Kühl Gallery. In any case, even assuming that the works were brought to another location or distributed in several locations, the result does not change. In fact, excluding the two works sold during the exhibition, 8 works out of 14 have “reappeared” at a distance of 15-20 years. So you can safely assume that even the other 6 works have had the same fate. Other very important and extremely significant aspects have also emerged. In the period between 1923 and mid-1927, Mondrian produced a total of 40 works. 75%, practically almost all of the production, were sold in Germany, highlighting a close relationship with Sophie Küppers and the Kunstausstellung Kühl Gallery in Dresden. In the final analysis, therefore, it turned out that the Gallery was the owner of all these works. (Sophie Küppers, who at that time collaborated with the Dresden gallery, was only the first ring of “provenance.” Among other things, she moved to Moscow with her husband El Lissitzky in 1927. It turns out that many works were transferred from Küppers at the KK Gallery, just in the year 1927). In the New York Times article of March 4, 2018, while pointing out that most likely the Kaiser Wilhelm Museum has 4 of these works without having legal title, it completely omits that the Kunstausstellung Kühl Gallery was the owner of the works themselves. This is very clear from official documents. On the contrary, the claim of Mondrian’s heirs is based on the fact that they were works “abandoned” by the artist when he was forced to leave Paris. This strong discrepancy suggests that the overall scenario has a different connotation. (On the other hand, three works “reappeared” in New York after a long time, have as their origin that of the Dresden Gallery). In essence, the claim of the works should come from the KK Gallery and not from the heirs of Mondrian. So, how are things exactly? Moreover, none of the works at the “Der Stuhl” exhibition has suffered the confiscation of the Nazis in the famous campaign against “Degenerate Art”. Then there is a factor that unites all the works transited in Germany. It seems to be much more than just a coincidence. In practice all the works revolve at the center of a specific social context. A context that at that time (and even now) evidently has a close relationship with Mondrian, Sophie Küppers and the Kunstausstellung Kühl Gallery. To conclude, the reconstruction of the entire history of the works B169 and B229, added to what is described in this chapter, has revealed only the “tip of the iceberg” of a “very complex system” in which several Mondrian works are immersed, cataloged as “disappeared.” The key to open this “system” is in a specific area.
B195 - Composition with Red, Blue
B196 - Composition: n.II with Yellow,
B197 - Composition with Yellow and
B198 - Composition with Yellow and
and Gray - 1927
Red and Blue - 1927
Blue - 1927
Red - 1927
252
FROM THE “CATALOGUE RAISONNÈ” Also Joosten in the “Catalogue Raisonnè”, reaches the same conclusions (although expressed in different form) See Figure 11. In paragraph 8 “Provenance”, in fact, we can read that the consignment of Mondrian’s works was an important factor for its dissemination, particularly in the years between 1924 and 1927. The consignment of the works concerned two distinct categories of people: professional clients and friends. In the first categories we find Sophie Küppers and the Kunstausstellung Kühl Gallery in Dresden. Respectively they received 16 works (4 in October 1924 and 12 in June 1925) and 8 works (4 in June 1926 and 4 in April 1927). Then there are also other works for which nothing is known about the owners at the origin, in particular B195, B196, B197 and B198 reproduced on the alongside page (not covered in this Study of Reconstruction, as they are not disappeared works). Another rather complex aspect concerns works B155, B170, B185 (of which we spoke on pages 244-245) and B199. Basically it is not clear how they managed to arrive in the United States. B155 was in the group of the second delivery to Sophie Küppers. B170 and B185, were part of the first and second delivery to the Kunstausstellung Kühl Gallery. Joosten writes that most likely it is about works taken by people fleeing from Germany (remember, moreover, that these are works that took part in the famous “Der Stuhl” exhibition in Frankfurt in 1929 and that after this exhibition they “temporarily disappeared” for a long period of 15-20 years). Then there are many other questions. In particular one: how did six works get to the Kaiser Wilhelm Museum in Krefeld? These are: B110 (see pages 146-147) and B159-B160-B162-B163-B172 (see pages 242 and 246).
Fig. 11
253
diagram - from mondrian to the final destination see separate supplement
253-A
PIET MONDRIAN 1926 Photo André Kertész - image from website artnet.com SOPHIE LISSITZKY-KÜPPERS 1932 Anonymous photo - image from website maschinenkunst.blogspot.it KUNSTAUSSTELLUNG KÜHL GALLERY - Dresden The headquarters in the center of Dresden in Kleine Brüdergasse 21, which ceased to exist on February 13, 1945 Image from the Gallery website
253-B
MONDRIAN
SOPHIE LISSITZKY-KÜPPERS
KUNSTAUSSTELLUNG KÜHL GALLERY
FRANKFURT
EXHIBITIONS 1 - MONDRIAN - Kunstausstellung Kühl Gallery - DRESDEN - 1925 2 - INTERNAZIONALE Kunstausstellung Kühl & Kühn Gallery - DRESDEN - 1926 3 - LISSITZKY / MONDRIAN / RAY - MUNCHEN - 1926 4 - WEGE UND RICHTUNGEN - MANNHEIM - 1927 5 - DER STUHL - FRANKFURT - 1929
1993 - BEYELER COLLECTION / BASEL B153
HANNOVER
DRESDEN
5 - DER STUL 1929
B148
DISAPPEARED
1990 - ANNELY JUDA FINE ART / LONDON
No information
B149
B187
B110 B149
B153 and B187 WERNER M. MOSER and SILVA MOSER-SCHINDLER PURCHASED during exhibition DER STUHL B153
B153
B153
B153
1 B154
B187
4
BIENERT FAMILY
B155
2
B155
3
REAPPEARS in 1942
4
B156
B156
DISAPPEARED
3
B159
1
3
1950 KAISER WILHELM MUSEUM KREFELD
B160
3
4
B162
B161 1925 IDA BIENERT
2
1977 - PRIVATE COLLECTION
B162
REAPPEARS in 1950 B163
1 B163
B163
3
B163
1 B164
4
B163
3
Probably in Private Collection
B158
DISAPPEARED B165
B184
B165
B169
REAPPEARS in 1955
4
B170
2
B171
B165
1955 - SIDNEY JANIS GALLERY NEW YORK
B169
2
B171
B110
B186
1926 FRIEDRICH BIENERT, SON OF IDA BIENERT
B170
B172
3
B165
B169
ALSO B110 “REAPPEARS” AT THE KAISER WILHELM MUSEUM IN KREFELD IN 1950, AFTER TAKING PART IN THE “DER STUHL” EXHIBITION IN FRANKFURT IN 1929. IT IS CURRENTLY IN A PRIVATE COLLECTION.
4
B164
1
B160
B162
DISAPPEARED
B162
B159
B160
B161
1 B162
4
B160
1 B161
Probably went to the Kaiser Wilhelm Museum in 1950 and then sold
4
B159
B160
1946 - PHILLIPS COLLECTION / WASHINGTON D.C.
B158
1
B160
B155
B157 1925 IDA BIENERT
B158
B159
B156
1926 FRIEDRICH BIENERT, SON OF IDA BIENERT
B157
B158
B155
1971 - NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART / WASHINGTON D.C.
DISAPPEARED
B159
1942 - VALENTIN GALLERY / NEW YORK
B155
1 B158
B154
1926 FRIEDRICH BIENERT, SON OF IDA BIENERT
1 B157
1983 - PRIVATE COLLECTION
B154
1 B156
B153
B154
1 B155
3
B165
1956 - KUNSTHAUS ZÜRICH
1944 - PIET MONDRIAN ESTATE - HOLTZMAN / NEW YORK
4
B170
4
B171
REAPPEARS in 1944
B170
B170
2004 - NAHMAD COLLECTION / SWITZERLAND
DISAPPEARED
B174
B175
DISAPPEARED No information
B180
B180
CONFISCATED BY THE NAZIS - 1937 DISAPPEARED
1939 - KARL BUCHHOLZ / BERLIN
B174
CONFISCATED BY THE NAZIS - 1937 DISAPPEARED
B180
B180
DISAPPEARED
1
4
B181
DISAPPEARED No information
B184
1952 - PHILADELPHIA MUSEUM OF ART
B184
B184
DISAPPEARED
1949 - NORMAN LASKEY / NEW YORK B185
B185
B185
B186
B186
B186
REAPPEARS in 1949
B187
WILLEM MARINUS DUDOK
B187 WILLEM SANDBERG Director of the Stedelijk Museum from 1945 to 1962 (from 1936 Curator)
1928 - MUSEUM FOLKWANG / ESSEN B202
B202
B202
CONFISCATED BY THE NAZIS - 1937 DISAPPEARED B229
B185
1960 - PRIVATE COLLECTION
DISAPPEARED B187
B185
1944 - HILVERSUM / AMSTERDAM B229
1944 DISAPPEARED
1988 - STEDELIJK MUSEUM / AMSTERDAM
B169 THE CANVAS IS MODIFICATED TO REPLACE B229
B229
supplemento / supplement
B174
B149
B173
B173
CONFISCATED BY THE NAZIS - 1937
mondrian - the disappeared paintings
B149
B173
Kaiser Wilhelm Museum in 1950 and then sold
B173
B172
B184 - B186 Probably went to the
B173
4
B172
HYPOTHESIS FOR B169 and B229
B172
PROVINZIALMUSEUM / HANNOVER
diagramma - da mondrian alla destinazione finale / diagram - from mondrian to the final destination
PARIS