The Kunsthaus Zürich advisory board for the upcoming Bührle exhibition, an assembly of art scholars and historians, has resigned. The departure, confirmed by the museum, follows a disagreement over the exhibition’s portrayal of former art owners who fell victim to the Nazi regime.
The new exhibition, set to open on November 3, foregrounds the collection of Emil Georg Bührle. A controversial figure, Bührle amassed his wealth selling weapons to Nazi Germany. His collection, subsequently, is a tableau of ethical quandaries. The advisory board, it seems, felt the exhibition insufficiently addressed the individual fates of the victims whose artworks found their way into Bührle’s possession.
The advisory board has been advising the Kunsthaus on the new exhibition over the past twelve months, critically questioning it again and again, according to the statement. "We want diversity of opinion," Kunsthaus director Ann Demeester is quoted as saying. "Dissent and debate are part of this exhibition."
At the end, the Kunsthaus and the Advisory Board did not agree on all aspects of the implementation and no consensus could be reached. "This is regrettable and shows how complex the issue is," Demeester is further quoted.
At a media conference next Thursday, the day before the planned opening of the exhibition, the background to the resignation of the advisory board will be further explained, writes the Kunsthaus.
Main Image :Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Irène Cahen d‘Anvers (La Petite Irène), 1850, Sammlung Emil Bührle, Dauerleihgabe im Kunsthaus Zürich (ehem. Sammlung Béatrice Camondo)