Art Robbery: Provenance research and Restitution in Germany and France

Provenance research and the protection of cultural assets have awoken from a deep slumber. New professorships are being established, as in Bonn; institutes specializing in restitution and compensation are being created; and, if one’s feelings can be trusted, a kind of revolution is currently underway, a “tectonic quake” as described by Bénedicte Savoy, who was appointed by President Macron to serve on a commission addressing such issues. At the same time, both an aesthetic reflection and an invitation to return stolen goods occurs in Maria Eichhorn’s fascinating Rose Valland-Projekt, which was at the center of attention at the last documenta and is now being advanced with the artist at the Käte Hamburger Center for Advanced Study “Law as Culture”. The workshop, a joint effort by the Commission pour l’indemnisation des Victimes de Spoliations (CIVS), the Institut français, and the Käte Hamburger Center for Advanced Study “Law as Culture”, aims to bring together the experiences of historians, sociologists, and practitioners of provenance research in such a way that the globality of this large task can be taken into account in Germany and France while likewise considering each country’s national context.

We kindly ask that you register prior to the event. Further information can be found in the attached workshop invitation (PDF in german language).