The heirs of a Jewish cabaret singer and artwork collector killed within the Holocaust have dropped their declare in opposition to the Santa Barbara Museum of Artwork over a drawing they are saying was stolen from their late relative by the Nazis, offered into the New York sellers’ market, and finally gifted to the museum by considered one of its founders.
The rationale for the voluntary dismissal in early August is unclear. Attorneys for the heirs of Franz Friedrich ‘Fritz’ Grünbaum, who’ve efficiently sued different artwork establishments for the return of items from his scattered assortment, declined to remark. Some authorized observers speculate the drawing ― a small pencil on paper sketch by Austrian expressionist Egon Schiele ― is now additionally within the means of being returned.
Santa Barbara Museum of Artwork spokesperson Katrina Carl stated she was unable to talk about the case. “Issues surrounding this matter are in course of, and we must always have the ability to make an announcement when all is resolved,” she stated.
For causes equally imprecise, the Manhattan District Lawyer’s Workplace is now additionally concerned. The workplace’s press secretary declined to remark.
Born in 1880, Grünbaum was a widely known Viennese entertainer who wrote and carried out cabarets, songs, and operettas. He additionally directed and acted in movies. Over his lifetime, he amassed an almost 500-piece artwork assortment with at the least 80 works by Schiele.
In 1938 Grünbaum was captured and held on the Dachau Focus Camp by Hitler’s Third Reich, the place he was tortured into signing over energy of lawyer to his spouse. Grünbaum’s spouse, Elisabeth, was then pressured to liquidate her husband’s property earlier than she herself was imprisoned and killed.
