The Christie’s Grant for Nazi-era Provenance Research 2024
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Event date 17 APRIL - 30 JUNE -
Event location Worldwide
Christie’s is delighted to announce the second year of the Christie’s Grant for Nazi-era Provenance Research, supporting the next generation of provenance researchers in this field. The grant will be offered to four recipients (£5,000 each), to fund forward-thinking academic, post-graduate research into subjects related to Nazi-era provenance research and restitution.
In addition, and new in 2024, Christie’s will offer five grants of £1,000 each to undergraduates who are studying the Nazi-era and restitution-related topics, and who may be considering a future career or study in this area, with a view to deepening their interest in the subject.
In 2023 Christie’s launched its Grant for Nazi-era Provenance Research as part of its year-long programme, “Reflecting on Restitution”, organised by the auction house to mark the 25th anniversary of the Washington Principles—the 11 foundational principles which have provided a framework for handling research into and claims resulting from the widespread confiscation, forced sales and looting of artworks during the Nazi era.
The application process is open to students in art history or with an interdisciplinary interest in Nazi-era related provenance research. The deadline for submissions is 30 June 2024.
Christie’s commitment to expanding scholarship underpins our commitment to the next generation of provenance research and restitution. It is deeply gratifying to announce Christie’s Grant for Nazi-era Provenance Research for the second time.’—Marc Porter, Christie’s Chairman
The application process
Follow the steps below to submit your application
All applications for post-graduate grants should include the below, preferably in a single document:
- An outline of the applicant’s current or proposed research topic (1,000 – 2,000 words), including date of thesis submission
- Confirmation of applicant’s enrolment at an academic institution in a post-graduate course (Master’s or Ph. D studies) for the year 2024/2025
- Two academic references
- A statement of how financial support - up to £5,000 - would assist in the completion of the applicant’s studies. (Noting that grants should be utilised within 18 months of receipt. Grants may cover institutional/tuition fees, research-related costs or to assist open access publication)
- Curriculum vitae
- Any additional information supporting Christie’s aim of increasing and supporting voices under-represented in provenance research, and to support early career development, particularly encouraging those for whom financial support will be significant in ensuring the opportunity to pursue specialized research
Undergraduate submission guidelines
All applications for undergraduate grants should include the below, preferably in a single document:
- An outline of the applicant’s current research and practical next steps on how an interest in Nazi-era restitution related research would be developed (1,000 – 2,000 words)
- Confirmation of applicant’s enrolment at an academic institution on an undergraduate course for the year 2024/2025, and anticipated date of graduation
- Two academic references
- A statement of how financial support - up to £1,000 - would assist in the completion of the applicant’s studies, demonstrating that this is with a view to continuing engagement in this or a related field. (Noting that grants should be utilised within 18 months of receipt. Grants may cover institutional/tuition fees, research-related costs or to assist open access publication)
- Curriculum vitae
- Any additional information supporting Christie’s aim of increasing and supporting voices under-represented in provenance research, and to support early career development, particularly encouraging those for whom financial support will be significant in ensuring the opportunity to pursue specialized research
Grant Selection Panel 2024
Christie’s is working with leading experts in the field to serve on the selection panel to identify this year’s Grant recipients. We are delighted to be working with:
Anne Webber, Commission for Looted Art in Europe
Anne Webber CBE is Co-Founder and Co-Chair of the Commission for Looted Art in Europe (CLAE). Established in 1999, CLAE is a non-profit, expert, representative body which negotiates restitution laws and policies with governments and cultural institutions, conducts research and trains provenance researchers, and acts for families worldwide to identify, locate and recover their Nazi-looted cultural property. She is also founder and Director of the Central Registry of Information on Looted Cultural Property 1933-1945 at lootedart.com, set up in 2001 to fulfil Washington Principle VI and which is an international centre of expertise and provides an online repository of the latest research, news and information from 49 countries and a database of 25,000 objects.
Marc Masurovsky, Holocaust Art Restitution Project
Marc Masurovsky co-founded the Holocaust Art Restitution Project (HARP) in September 1997 and served as its Director of Research. Active from 1980 in examining assets looted during the Nazi era, he has been an expert historian in Swiss banks class action lawsuits, a consultant for the US Department of Justice's Office of Special Investigations and former director of the Provenance Research Training Program at the Prague-based European Shoah Legacy Institute (ESLI). From 2005-19, Marc was project director of the Database of Art Objects at the Jeu de Paume. He has been teaching provenance research workshops for the Association for Research into Crimes against Art (ARCA) (Amelia, Italy) since 2017.
Dr Jacques Schuhmacher, Victoria & Albert Museum
Jacques Schuhmacher is the Senior Provenance Research Curator at the Victoria & Albert Museum, supported by The Polonsky Foundation. He specializes in Nazi-era provenance research within museum contexts and curated the special provenance display titled ‘Concealed Histories: Uncovering the Story of Nazi Looting’. Jacques is also a member of the National Museum Directors’ Council (NMDC) Spoliation Working Group, which coordinates provenance research efforts across UK museums regarding the Nazi period. He is the author of the forthcoming book, ‘Nazi-Era Provenance of Museum Collections: A Research Guide’ (University College London Press). Jacques holds a doctorate in history from Oxford University.
Claire Gimpel Touchard, The René Gimpel Archives
Claire Gimpel Touchard is the granddaughter of René Gimpel, the French resistance fighter, and well-known pre-war collector and art dealer from whom 200 crates of fine art and furniture were stolen by the Nazis. Gimpel was deported to Neuengamme prison camp in Germany, where he died from slave-labour exhaustion. Claire is actively involved in seeking the restitution of her grandfather’s artworks. The Gimpel family also commemorate René through the digitization of the gallery archives (over 10,000 documents now available online), publishing new editions of his ‘Diary of an Art Dealer’ in French and English, participating in talks, exhibitions and seminars - all actions also aimed to increase understanding of the importance of provenance research.
Professor Kim Oosterlinck, Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management (Université libre de Bruxelles)
Kim Oosterlinck is Professor of Finance at the Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management (Université libre de Bruxelles). He holds a master’s in management, a master’s in art history and archaeology, and a Ph.D. in economics and management from the Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB). He has published several articles on the Belgian, British, Dutch, French and German art markets during WWII and is currently working on a book linking the economics of war to the art market boom observed in several countries. He is currently co-chair of TIAMSA (The International Art Market Studies Association).
Sarah Done joined Christie's in 2003, with a sole focus on Nazi-era restitution from 2004. First researching artworks for sale and now as Director of Restitution, she works principally on the research and resolution dialogue for restitution claims. Sarah contributes to shaping Christie's approach to restitution and establishing its reputation for best practice in this field, working widely with colleagues both in-house and within the restitution community.
The confiscations, forced sales and looting of artworks during the Nazi-era was an unprecedented theft. Research into personal and cultural loss has grown exponentially over the last 25 years. Without the dedication and tenacity of researchers, it would be almost impossible to uncover and record this history, and to advance restitution efforts. But there is much more to do. That is why, for the second consecutive year, Christie’s is delighted to support the next generation of Nazi-era provenance researchers. The exchange of ideas and engagement with last year’s grant applicants was a rewarding part of our ‘Reflecting on Restitution’ programme, honoring the 25th anniversary of the Washington Principles. We look forward to increasing our support this year.’—Sarah Done, Director, Restitution
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For over a quarter of a century, Christie’s has engaged with the legacy of Nazi era and World War II art theft and dispossession. Losses during 1933–1945 to Europe’s collections, in particular those of Jewish collectors, through persecution, confiscation, and forced sales continues to resonate strongly in today’s art world. Christie’s has the largest and most experienced Restitution team of any international auction house, underscoring our responsibility to this field.
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To learn more about the Holocaust please visit: Yad Vashem