Kunstschützer und Kunstkäufer im besetzten Frankreich: Felix Kuetgens und seine Erwerbungen für die Aachener Museen, 1940-1943 = A Kunstschutz-Officer purchasing art in occupied France : Felix Kuetgens and his acquisitions for the museums of the City of Aachen 1940-1943
Gespeichert in:
Bibliographische Detailangaben
Beteilige Person: Becker, Heinrich 1967- (VerfasserIn)
Format: Paper
Sprache:Deutsch
Veröffentlicht: [2022]
Schlagwörter:
Abstract:Kunstschutz-Officer purchasing art in occupied France: Felix Kuetgens and his acquisitions for the museums of the City of Aachen 1940-1943 From 1940 to 1943 the art-historian Felix Kuetgens (1890-1976) was active as an officer of the German Kunstschutz in France. In his capacity as head of the museums of the City of Aachen he also bought a number of works of art on the prospering Paris art market during these years. Only after the war, possibly on a demand from the allied authorities, Kuetgens itemized these acquisitions - from his memory, and "to the best of his knowledge and belief". According to the later and longer version of the resulting list, from June 1946, he purchased 75 objects for the City of Aachen (28 paintings, 15 sculptures and 32 pieces under the heading "arts and crafts") for about 1.400.000 Francs. With regard to 13 of his acquisitions Kuetgens only mentions approximate selling addresses. For most of the objects, though, he names the sellers and often an address. The following of these sellers are also to be found among the so-called "Red Flag Names" compiled by the Art Looting Intelligence Unit of the US-american Office of Strategic Services: "Kunsthaus Bague [Bagues?]", "Arno Breker", "Kunstgewerbehaus Buvelot", "Kunsthandlung Ducet [Doucet?]", "Galerie Durand-Ruel", "Cte de la Forret-Dyvonne [Forest-Divonne?]", "Galerie Hugo Engel", "Rud. Holzapfel", "Kalebdijan-Frères", "Kunsthändler --- Leegenhoeck", "Albert Loevenich", "Galerie Gustav Rochlitz", "Broncegiesser Rudier", "M. Arthur Sambon", "Santo Bey de Semo […/ in the art gallery] André Schoeller" and "Adolf Wüster, Paris Deutsche Botschaft".
The majority of Kuetgens’ acquisitions was restituted to France or supposedly lost in the turmoils of the late war and early post-war period. However, today eleven of the purchases can still be identified in the collections of the City of Aachen. The present contribution investigates the said list, the acquisition practice in France and Kuetgens’ according attitudes with help of some further documents, not only from his time as Kunstschutz-Officer but also from - partly much - later years.
Umfang:Illustrationen
ISBN:978-3-11-073760-8