The Kunsthaus Zurich, one of Switzerland’s most prestigious art museums, has announced it will remove five paintings after a review of their provenance under new guidelines for dealing with artworks looted by the Nazis.
A sixth painting also came in for additional scrutiny, the foundation responsible for the Emil Buhrle Collection said, though it did not believe the new guidelines applied to the work.
The foundation’s namesake was a German-born arms dealer who made his fortune during World War II, and there have long been suspicions about the Nazi-era origins of one of Europe’s most prestigious private art collections.
“The Kunsthaus Zurich has been informed by the Foundation E.G. Buhrle Collection that the Foundation is seeking solutions with the legal successors of former owners for six works in the collection,” the museum said.
“The Kunsthaus welcomes this approach, but in the interests of visitors very much regrets that five of the paintings will be removed from the Kunsthaus premises” by the foundation on Thursday, it added.
The paintings in question are by Gustave Courbet, Claude Monet, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Vincent van Gogh and Paul Gauguin.