2026-02-19
Provenance – one often encounters this term if they follow the art market. We remember its role, for example, in the case of Jacek Malczewski's “Rzeczywistość,” whose dubious origin led to the painting being held in custody by the prosecutor's office.
The field in question encompasses research into the origins of works of art, and while it is useful in determining authenticity in general, in some circles – specifically German (Provenienzforschung) and Polish – provenance research focuses primarily on tracing the fate of works looted during World War II.
A few days ago, the New York Times publicized the case of a painting by Franz Marc (“Horse in a Landscape,” 1910), an artist associated with the Munich group Der blaue Reiter, which also included Wassily Kandinsky, among others. In 1953, the painting found its way into the collection of the Folkwang Museum in Essen, where it remains to this day.
The origin of the work is shrouded in controversy: there are gaps in its provenance. A dispute is currently ongoing between the museum and the heirs of Hugo Simon, a Jewish collector living in Germany. Simon was the last owner of Marc's painting before the Nazis came to power.
The post-war history of the work has not yet been fully traced, but it is known that Simon, fleeing Germany, sent it to France, while the Folkwang Museum acquired it from a German collector after the war. Simon's heirs are demanding that the museum admit that it most likely acquired a work that found its way back to Germany as a looted item.
What's next for the painting? The case has been referred to a German arbitration court established a few weeks ago for the purpose of settling issues related to cultural property looted by the Nazis.
In recent years, the investigation of such cases has been recognized by German art historians as one of the priorities, and even a decisive issue in the management of cultural heritage. It is worth mentioning, for example, the case of the Bavarian State Painting Collection, whose director resigned as a result of accusations of a lack of transparency in identifying works from the collection that were looted during the war.