Provenance of acquisitions by the Basel Public Art Collection between 1981 and 2016
Since 2016, the Kunstmuseum has been systematically reviewing the provenance of its gallery holdings (paintings and sculptures created before 1945). The review periods were based on the terms of office of the directors. Three projects examined and supplemented the collection entries from 1933–1945 (Otto Fischer and Georg Schmidt both), 1946–1962 (Georg Schmidt), and 1963–1980 (Franz Meyer). This undertaking is now being completed with the fourth and final stage in this form. The subject of the investigations are the acquisitions from 1981 to 2016. This period covers the directorships of Christian Geelhaar (1981–1991), Katharina Schmidt (1992–2001), and Bernhard Mendes Bürgi (2001–2016). All three directors continued Georg Schmidt's commitment to expanding the collection into the present day, which took on a visible form in 1980 with the opening of the Museum für Gegenwartskunst (now the Kunstmuseum Basel | Gegenwart), the only museum of its kind in Europe at the time.
The project is supported by the Rahmenausgabenbewilligung für aktive Provenienzforschung in den kantonalen Museen Basel-Stadt (RAB) and the Ernst Göhner Stiftung.
A painting by Henri Rousseau: Kunstmuseum Basel in negotiations over compensation for “flight asset” purchase
In accordance with our strategy for provenance research, which prioritizes in-depth investigation of so-called “flight assets,” The Kunstmuseum Basel is conducting discussions regarding a just and fair solution in connection with the purchase of Henri Rousseau’s painting La muse inspirant le poète / Apollinaire et sa muse.
