{"id":78000,"date":"2026-06-05T07:29:18","date_gmt":"2026-06-05T07:29:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/78000\/"},"modified":"2026-06-05T07:29:18","modified_gmt":"2026-06-05T07:29:18","slug":"buhrles-troubled-art-collection-is-squashed-together-in-new-zurich-show","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/78000\/","title":{"rendered":"B\u00fchrle\u2019s\u00a0troubled art\u00a0collection\u00a0is squashed together in\u00a0new\u00a0Zurich\u00a0show"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"The<\/p>\n

The Zurich Museum of Fine Arts is still grappling with the legacy of Emil B\u00fchrle\u2019s controversial collection. This time, the works are presented together like a treasure trove of diverse objects discovered in a chest. <\/p>\n

Kunsthaus Z\u00fcrich <\/p>\n

Swiss\u00a0industrialist\u00a0Emil G.\u00a0B\u00fchrle\u2019s\u00a0art\u00a0collection, on loan\u00a0to\u00a0Zurich\u2019s\u00a0Museum of Fine\u00a0Arts, has been the\u00a0cause of one\u00a0uproar\u00a0after another. As Switzerland’s biggest art museum\u00a0takes on responsibility for researching the ownership history of these\u00a0paintings,\u00a0many\u00a0of which once belonged to Jewish collectors persecuted by the Nazis, it has also opened a new exhibition\u00a0\u2013\u00a0the third since the museum first put the artworks on display in 2021.\n<\/p>\n

This content was published on <\/p>\n

June 5, 2026 – 09:00\n<\/p>\n

In a transparent white gown that leaves little to the imagination, \u00c9douard Manet\u2019s\u00a0La Sultane, painted around 1871, is displayed at Zurich\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts (Kunsthaus) on a crowded wall, squeezed between other,\u00a0equally valuable paintings.<\/p>\n

There\u00a0are\u00a0no labels\u00a0informing visitors of\u00a0the name of the artist,\u00a0title\u00a0and date\u00a0of\u00a0these\u00a0paintings, let alone any ownership history\u00a0in this exhibition, which opened in April. A console in\u00a0the first gallery\u00a0is more informative: there visitors can swipe the screen a few times to discover that\u00a0La Sultane\u00a0was\u00a0once owned by the\u00a0German\u00a0Jewish industrialist Max Silberberg, who was deported in 1942 and is presumed to have been murdered at Auschwitz.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Edouard<\/p>\n

Edouard Manet\u2019s \u2018La Sultane\u2019, 1871. <\/p>\n

Sammlung Emil B\u00fchrle <\/p>\n

Silberberg\u00a0sold\u00a0the painting\u00a0in 1937 to the dealer Paul Rosenberg,\u00a0from whom\u00a0Emil B\u00fchrle\u00a0purchased it\u00a0in 1953.\u00a0The richest man in Switzerland\u00a0at the time,\u00a0B\u00fchrle\u00a0built his fortune\u00a0by selling the anti-aircraft cannons his factories produced to Nazi Germany. He amassed\u00a0a\u00a0vast and valuable art\u00a0collection\u00a0that\u00a0first went on show\u00a0in a vast new extension at\u00a0the Kunsthaus\u00a0in 2021. Some of the paintings he bought are known to have been looted from Jews.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

In the case of\u00a0La Sultane, the E. G. B\u00fchrle Collection Foundation reached a confidential settlement\u00a0last year\u00a0with Silberberg\u2019s heirs, who argued that\u00a0he\u00a0had sold\u00a0the painting\u00a0as a consequence of\u00a0Nazi persecution\u00a0(a view the foundation contested).\u00a0<\/p>\n

The quality of\u00a0B\u00fchrle\u2019s\u00a0collection is indisputable,\u00a0containing\u00a0masterpieces by Claude Monet, Vincent van Gogh, Paul C\u00e9zanne\u00a0and Auguste Renoir.\u00a0But many critics\u00a0\u2013\u00a0historians, provenance researchers, artists, and commentators\u00a0\u2013\u00a0said\u00a0the Kunsthaus made\u00a0a\u00a0historic error\u00a0by\u00a0accepting\u00a0the long-term loan of 205\u00a0artworks from the foundation\u00a0set up\u00a0in 1960\u00a0by\u00a0his widow and children. Ever since the art\u00a0collection\u00a0first\u00a0went on display\u00a0in\u00a02021, it has\u00a0been a source of\u00a0public\u00a0consternation, and\u00a0even outrage, focussed on the origins of\u00a0B\u00fchrle\u2019s\u00a0wealth and the dark provenance of some of his paintings.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Such is the\u00a0weight of the\u00a0gift\u00a0that\u00a0this is the\u00a0third time\u00a0the museum attempts to\u00a0publicly\u00a0come\u00a0to terms with\u00a0the\u00a0collection and its challenging, unresolved\u00a0history.<\/p>\n

\n More<\/p>\n

\"Emil<\/p>\n

More <\/p>\n

History\n <\/p>\n

Emil B\u00fchrle and the art of war <\/p>\n

\n

This content was published on <\/p>\n

Jan 6, 2021 <\/p>\n

Who was Emil B\u00fchrle, a German from a modest background who become Switzerland\u2019s wealthiest man and a world-renowned art collector? <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Read more: Emil B\u00fchrle and the art of war
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

The Gift<\/p>\n

B\u00fchrle\u2019s\u00a0ties to the Kunsthaus\u00a0date back to 1940, when he became a member of\u00a0the museum\u2019s\u00a0board of trustees. He funded an earlier extension completed in 1958.\u00a0A\u00a0bust and plaque at the museum honour his contribution.<\/p>\n

While\u00a0the city of Zurich commissioned a report from Zurich University\u00a0on\u00a0B\u00fchrle\u2019s\u00a0biography and business activities\u00a0before the collection went on display,\u00a0research\u00a0into\u00a0the ownership history of individual paintings\u00a0was\u00a0overseen\u00a0by\u00a0the foundation\u00a0created by his family.\u00a0In his book,\u00a0The Contaminated Museum,\u00a0historian Erich Keller described the foundation\u2019s provenance research\u00a0as\u00a0\u201ca filter which withholds decisive facts.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"B\u00fchrle's<\/p>\n

B\u00fchrle\u2019s bust is still at the entrance of the museum\u2019s building. <\/p>\n

Jakob Tanner <\/p>\n

The first exhibition of the collection was roundly attacked for relying on\u00a0this research. The\u00a0uproar prompted the canton and city of Zurich and the trustees of the\u00a0Kunsthaus\u00a0to commission an independent report into the foundation\u2019s provenance research. The team\u00a0of experts, led by the president of the German Historical Museum, Raphael Gross, found\u00a0it\u00a0inadequate\u00a0in\u00a0a number of respects.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

In a\u00a02024\u00a0interview with\u00a0Swissinfo, Gross described the collection as \u201chistorically particularly tainted, on a scale that is possibly unique in Switzerland.\u201d\u00a0Of the 205 paintings on loan from the B\u00fchrle\u00a0Foundation to\u00a0the\u00a0Kunsthaus, 133 were owned by Jews at some point before 1945, the report found. Many of these works were not listed as having prior Jewish owners in the foundation\u2019s research.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

In\u00a0April,\u00a0after the city of Zurich approved\u00a0CHF3.86 million\u00a0($4.9 million)\u00a0in funding,\u00a0the\u00a0museum\u00a0took\u00a0over the provenance research into the collection\u00a0in a five-year project.\u00a0But\u00a0the museum\u00a0is still, it seems,\u00a0struggling with\u00a0how best to display this\u00a0cumbersome\u00a0legacy:\u00a0it describes\u00a0the new exhibition, which opened\u00a0on April 10\u00a0and runs until 2027,\u00a0as\u00a0an \u201cinterim\u201d show.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAs the research has now started, we wanted to show a presentation that has the character of an interim status report and gives an overview of what is in the collection and what will happen now,\u201d\u00a0says Kristin Steiner,\u00a0a\u00a0spokesperson\u00a0for the museum.<\/p>\n

\n More<\/p>\n

\"Raphael<\/p>\n

More <\/p>\n

Culture\n <\/p>\n

Inquiry finds \u2018tainted\u2019 B\u00fchrle art collection needs much more provenance research <\/p>\n

\n

This content was published on <\/p>\n

Jul 17, 2024 <\/p>\n

The B\u00fchrle collection, on loan to the Kunsthaus Zurich fine art museum, is \u201chistorically tainted, on a scale that is possibly unique in Switzerland\u201d, says historian Raphael Gross. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Read more: Inquiry finds \u2018tainted\u2019 B\u00fchrle art collection needs much more provenance research
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

Stock inventory\u00a0<\/p>\n

At the entrance to the galleries, a wall panel poses the questions the Kunsthaus has been asking itself: \u201cHow can such an illustrious but, at the same time, controversial private collection be shown in a museum with a public mandate? How can the historical context be conveyed in an art museum?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Inside, paintings are hung close together, many far above eye-level, in what the museum\u00a0terms a \u201cPetersburg hanging\u201d,\u00a0a style\u00a0typical of 19th-century salons. To a modern-day viewer accustomed to abundant wall space between paintings, it can appear chaotic and overwhelming.<\/p>\n

\"Sculptures<\/p>\n

Sculptures and statues displayed in a seemingly random procession in the third iteration of the B\u00fchrle Collection at Zurich\u2019s Kunsthaus. <\/p>\n

Kunsthaus Z\u00fcrich <\/p>\n

Sculptures are crammed into one room\u00a0on plinths of varying heights\u00a0against\u00a0a green-carpet\u00a0background\u00a0\u2013 a jumble of medieval piet\u00e0s, virgins\u00a0with\u00a0child,\u00a0saints\u00a0and\u00a0an\u00a0incongruous child dancer by Edgar Degas\u00a0in the centre foreground.\u00a0To get any information on the works, including artist, date and title, visitors must consult pamphlets\u00a0stored\u00a0on racks in each gallery.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It\u00a0is\u00a0hard to fathom the rationale behind this transitional exhibition, described in the\u00a0Neue Z\u00fcrcher Zeitung\u00a0\u201cas\u00a0loveless\u00a0as a\u00a0stock\u00a0inventory\u201d.\u00a0The\u00a0previous\u00a0exhibition, mounted in 2023 after the first\u00a0show\u00a0faced an outcry,\u00a0explored the\u00a0historic context of the collection, the ownership history of individual artworks and a variety of perspectives on how to address Nazi loot in public museums.\u00a0<\/p>\n

One criticism after another<\/p>\n

But even that\u00a0important\u00a0exhibition\u00a0\u2013\u00a0the first to address B\u00fchrle\u2019s legacy head-on\u00a0\u2013\u00a0was heavily criticised.\u00a0The entire expert team responsible for planning it\u00a0resigned before\u00a0the\u00a0opening, protesting that\u00a0it\u00a0did not adequately\u00a0explore\u00a0the fates of the\u00a0previous\u00a0Jewish owners of the paintings\u00a0B\u00fchrle\u00a0bought.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The\u00a0new exhibition allows\u00a0the\u00a0Kunsthaus to show\u00a0almost\u00a0all\u00a0the artworks\u00a0from the\u00a0loan\u00a0at once,\u00a0a point the curators appear to view as important.\u00a0But the emphasis on comprehensiveness\u00a0leads to some odd encounters in the show: a 1520 painting of the\u00a0baptism of Christ by Joachim Patinir is shown next to a studio copy.\u00a0An 1897-1898 copy of a van Gogh self-portrait hangs close to an original one.<\/p>\n

\"Joachim<\/p>\n

Joachim Patinir (?), Baptism of Christ and the Sermon of St John the Baptist, c. 1520. <\/p>\n

Sammlung Emil B\u00fchrle <\/p>\n

An empty frame\u00a0drawn on the wall\u00a0symbolises\u00a0each work that cannot be shown, with a photo and\u00a0text\u00a0explaining, for example, that the work is on loan to an exhibition at the Leopold Museum in Vienna, or even, in the case of some works on paper, that they are too delicate to be on permanent display.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

In a few\u00a0instances, the explanation is more complicated. Take van Gogh\u2019s\u00a0The Old Tower\u00a0from 1884.\u00a0\u201cThis artwork was sold by a previous owner between 1933 and 1945 during their emigration from Germany due to Nazi persecution, outside of territory controlled by the Nazis,\u201d it reads.\u00a0\u201cIt is therefore considered to be cultural property that was confiscated due to Nazi persecution. The\u00a0B\u00fchrle\u00a0Foundation is negotiating with the legal successors to find a just and fair solution.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Vincent<\/p>\n

Vincent van Gogh, \u2018The Old Tower\u2019, 1884. <\/p>\n

Sammlung Emil B\u00fchrle <\/p>\n

The next chapter<\/p>\n

This of course awakens curiosity for the next chapter. Next year, yet another exhibition\u00a0for the collection\u00a0is planned\u00a0\u2013 this time,\u00a0the museum says\u00a0it\u00a0will\u00a0examine\u00a0the art historical context and the role of Jewish collectors in modernism.\u00a0There will also be\u00a0a film focussed on the context of the collection and\u00a0B\u00fchrle\u2019s\u00a0relationship with the Kunsthaus.\u00a0<\/p>\n

And after that? The\u00a0B\u00fchrle\u00a0Foundation\u00a0last year changed its statutes to allow the collection to be loaned outside Zurich. Previously,\u00a0they\u00a0explicitly\u00a0stated\u00a0that it had to be displayed in the city. The\u00a0Kunsthaus\u00a0loan expires in 2034. Whether it will be extended beyond that is in doubt.\u00a0At this point, it is tempting to speculate\u00a0on\u00a0whether its removal would elicit tears of regret or a huge sigh of relief\u00a0\u2013\u00a0and\u00a0difficult to imagine another European museum\u00a0agreeing\u00a0to\u00a0shoulder\u00a0this\u00a0considerable\u00a0burden.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/p>\n

An exception among the crowd: Auguste Renoir\u2019s Ir\u00e8ne Cahen d\u2019Anvers (Little Irene, 1880) occupies a prominent position due to the painting\u2019s remarkable provenance \u2013 see the article below. <\/p>\n

Kunsthaus Z\u00fcrich <\/p>\n

\n More<\/p>\n

\"Ann<\/p>\n

More <\/p>\n

Culture\n <\/p>\n

B\u00fchrle Collection: Ann Demeester on art, war, and context <\/p>\n

\n

This content was published on <\/p>\n

Nov 3, 2023 <\/p>\n

The Kunsthaus Z\u00fcrich is making another attempt to deal with the controversial B\u00fchrle collection. Director Ann Demeester discusses the exhibition. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Read more: B\u00fchrle Collection: Ann Demeester on art, war, and context
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

Edited by Virginie Mangin & Eduardo Simantob\/gw\u00a0<\/p>\n

Articles in this story <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Zurich Museum of Fine Arts is still grappling with the legacy of Emil B\u00fchrle\u2019s controversial collection. This…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":78001,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[6],"tags":[101,8679,98,5610,2669,8680,460,3314,51],"class_list":["post-78000","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-zurich","tag-article","tag-arts-general","tag-beat-culture","tag-beat-swiss-fine-arts","tag-history","tag-library-and-museum","tag-multi","tag-production-type-external","tag-zurich"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ch\/116696328892705243","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78000","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=78000"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78000\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/78001"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=78000"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=78000"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=78000"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}