Nazi's, Art & The University of Oklahoma- Part Four
Every so often a story has a happy ending. This one did but it took a couple of years to get there.
It actually started during World War 2. The Germans occupied France and in addition to taking many Jews from their homes, seized all their valuables. It included a lot of artwork. Raoul Meyer was the owner of this painting called "Shepherdess Bringing In Sheep". He survived the war but the painting was never returned. It was first found in Switzerland and he sued for its return but a court ruled against him. The painting made the rounds of art galleries and ended up at the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art on the campus of The University of Oklahoma. It was one of thirty-three pieces of art donated to the museum by the family of Aaron and Clara Weitzenhoffer, in 2000.
Here's where the story gets interesting....
Mr. Meyer's daughter, Leone heard about the painting and tried to reclaim it for her family. The University balked at returning it. This led to a couple of lawsuits and some very bad publicity for the University. Public opinion has always been on the Meyer's side and there's been talk that the decision reeked of antisemitism.
The fight may have come to an end. A settlement was announced yesterday. The University said they were returning ownership rights to the Meyer family and they will share the display rights of the painting.
OU President David Boren, who has been criticized by many for his handling of this case, issued the following statement on the settlement:
“The University is pleased that a constructive agreement has been reached.The rotating display of the work meets the University’s long-stated goal to ensure the painting remains available to Oklahomans and that it continues to be available for educational purposes. We are glad that the agreement recognizes the good faith and generosity of the Weitzenhoffer family, which has been one of the most generous donors in the University's history. Likewise, we are pleased to have found a way to reach an arrangement agreeable to the Meyer family.”
The painting will be going to a museum in France, where it will be on display for five years. After that, it will rotate between the Jones Museum in Norman and a museum in France. Both sides seem to be happy with the arrangement. But why did it take so long to do the right thing? This was a reasonable solution that plenty of people, including me, suggested two years ago.
There are some other pieces in the museum's collection that are suspected of being taken by the Nazi's during the war. Hopefully it's handled better than this case.
All's well that ends well in this case. Better late than never.
This was the fourth post on this subject over the last two years. Here's one, two, and three.
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