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Georges Braque, The Napkin Ring (1929)

Interchange – Confronting Nazi Art Looting in the 21st Century

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Phillips de Koninick, Portrait of a Boy (1673)

Provenance refers to the origins of an object or work of art. Historically it’s been used to describe the process of validating authorship— is this really a Picasso or a forgery? But since 1933, it has also referred to establishing rightful ownership of a work. From 1933 until the end of World War II, a number of Nazi units known as the Kuntschutz, plundered gold, silver and important art works from all over Europe. Although many of these items were recovered by Agents of Monuments, Fine Arts and Archives program —also known as the Monument Men— many are still missing. The Eskenazi Museum of Art on IU Campus is one of the institutions involved in Provenance initiatives, designed to restore works of art to the institutions that originally owned them. And when the museum re-opens in 2019, it plans to highlight provenance as part of several galleries and exhibits.

IMAGES
Georges Braque, French, 1882–1963
The Napkin Ring, 1929
Oil, sand, canvas, mixed media
16 x 47 1/2 in. (40.6 x 120.7 cm)
Gift of Dr. and Mrs. Henry R. Hope
Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University, 69.56

This painting belonged to French Jewish art dealer Paul Rosenberg, who sent it to safety in the United States in 1939. Rosenberg himself immigrated to the US the following year.

Philips Koninck, Dutch, 1619–1688.
Portrait of a Boy, 1673
Oil on canvas 29 1/2 x 25 3/4 in. (74.9 x 65.4 cm)
Bequest of Herman B Wells
Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University, 2001.45

GUEST
Jenny McComas, Curator of American and European Art at the Eskenazi Museum of Art at Indiana University, who specializes in issues of Provenance.

MUSIC
“Nuages” by Django Reinhardt
“Heebie Jeebies” by Louis Armstrong
“Raus mit den Männern ausm Reichstag” by Claire Waldoff
“Opus 33a” by Arnold Schoenberg, performed by Walter Robert

CREDITS
Guest Host and Episode Producer: Joan Hawkins
Producer: Doug Storm
Editor: Rob Schoon
Studio Engineer: Bryce Martin
Executive Producer: West Martin

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