Sotheby’s Ordered to Release the Names of its Clients in a Legal Case over Tiepolo’s Painting
By Katriona Hannah
Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, St. Francis of Paola Holding a Rosary, Book, and Staff, c1730s. Image: artnews.com
This story begins in 2019 when Giovanni Battista Tiepolo’s painting St. Francis of Paola Holding a Rosary, Book, and Staff, created sometime around 1730, was sold at Sotheby’s Master Paintings auction for $100,000. Later, in 2023 the heirs of Otto Fröhlich (a Jewish gallerist) filed a lawsuit against the auction house demanding to know the names of the painting’s seller and buyer in order to proceed with another lawsuit. They claim that upon fleeing Austria before WW2, Fröhlich left the painting for safekeeping, but did not sell it. Moreover, the heirs accused the auction house of not conducting proper research into the artwork’s history. Sotheby’s stated that this occurred due to “human error” and proceeded to conduct an in-depth research, identifying another possible claimant to the painting in the process.
In a recent update, the New York State Supreme Court has ordered Sotheby’s to release the names of the two parties involved in the transaction of the painting in 2019, as a result of a legal case that breaks the long-established secrecy of auction sales. Experts have stated that the ruling is unusual in the fact that the names of both the seller and the buyer are to be released, as it is more typical for the identity of only one party to be unveiled. Geri S. Krauss, the lawyer for the Fröhlich heirs told the New York Times: “This case certainly establishes clear precedent that where heirs provide support for their claims of restitution, auction houses will be required to disclose the names and contact information of the buyers and sellers of the claimed looted art and cannot hide behind confidentiality policies to refuse to do so.”
Otto Fröhlich’s 1939 art inventory. Image: nytimes.com
Sotheby’s rescinded the sale in 2023 and is currently in possession of the painting. They are in communication with the heirs of Otto Fröhlich and Adele Fischel (Otto’s cousin and the previous owner of the artwork before it was acquired by Fröhlich) and have published a statement saying that “Sotheby’s remains committed to reaching an amicable resolution with all parties involved and is presently engaged in discussions with representatives of the Fröhlich and Fischel families who assert competing claims to the Tiepolo.”
Adele Fischel parted with St Francis and 10 other paintings in 1938, the year when the Nazis forced Jews to officially register all of their property. She was killed in the Theresienstadt camp in the early 1940’s. Her heirs, who are being assisted by New York’s Holocaust Claims Processing Office, argue that the details of a transaction between Adele and her cousin Otto are unknown and that there is no mention of Fröhlich in Fischel’s files. Considering that the court proceedings are far from being over, the future fate of Tiepolo’s St. Francis of Paola Holding a Rosary, Book, and Staff remains unclear.
Bibliography
Cassady, Daniel. “Sotheby’s Ordered by New York Court to Reveal Consignor and Buyer of Tiepolo Painting”. ARTnews. 22.03.2024. https://www.artnews.com/art-news/news/sothebys-restitution-claim-tiepolo-1234700659/
Moynihan Colin. “Court Tells Sotheby’s to Reveal Its Auction Clients in ‘Nazi-Loot’ Case”. The New York Times. 22.03.2024. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/22/arts/design/sothebys-auction-clients-nazi-loot.html#:~:text=A judge in New York,auction in 2019 for $100,000.
Boucher, Brian. “A Jewish Dealer’s Heirs Are Suing Sotheby’s, Alleging Its Provenance of a Tiepolo Work ‘Misled the Public’”. artnet. 22.03.2024. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/art-dealer-heirs-frohlich-sue-tiepolo-sothebys-nazi-2306772