Friedrich Gutmann
Friedrich Bernhard Eugen "Fritz" Gutmann | |
|---|---|
| Born | Template:Birth date Berlin, Germany |
| Died | April 30, 1944 (aged 57) |
| Occupation(s) | Financier, art collector |
| Known for | Art collection, victim of Nazi persecution |
Friedrich Bernhard Eugen "Fritz" Gutmann (15 November 1886 – 30 April 1944) was a Dutch financier and collector of fine art. Having converted from Judaism, he and his spouse were victims of Nazi persecution in 1944, during which segments of his art holdings were confiscated by German forces. His legacy and collection are recounted by his grandson, Simon Goodman, in the 2015 publication The Orpheus Clock.
Biography
Born in Berlin to Sophie Magnus (1852–1915) and Eugen Gutmann (1840-1925), the founder of Dresdner Bank in 1872, Friedrich inherited a legacy tied to one of Germany’s foremost banking institutions. Over forty years, Eugen expanded the bank into an influential financial powerhouse with global connections, while also assembling an important Renaissance-era gold and silver art collection.
Prior to 1914, Friedrich oversaw the Dresdner Bank branch in London. During World War I, he was interned on the Isle of Man, but by 1918 had relocated to Amsterdam, where he managed the bank’s operations under the name Proehl & Gutmann. Serving as trustee for the "Eugen Gutmann Collection," he also curated a personal collection including Old Master paintings alongside Impressionist works by artists such as Pierre-Auguste Renoir and Edgar Degas. At their residence, Huize Bosbeek in Heemstede, Friedrich and his wife Louise von Landau (married in 1913) embraced a cosmopolitan lifestyle. Their daughter Lili wed in Italy in 1938, while their son Bernard pursued studies at Cambridge University and later anglicized the family name to "Goodman."
In anticipation of World War II, Friedrich safeguarded portions of his collection in Paris and New York but retained some pieces at Heemstede. Although baptized Christians, both he and Louise were classified under Nazi racial policies as targets. In early 1941, Nazi art dealer Karl Haberstock compelled them to sell much of their collection. Despite appeals for intervention—including a direct petition to SS leader Heinrich Himmler in 1942—Friedrich and Louise were apprehended in May 1943 and deported to concentration camps. Friedrich was fatally beaten at Theresienstadt’s Small Fortress in April 1944; Louise was later killed at Auschwitz within the same year.
Controversy surrounding looted Degas artwork
Following the conclusion of the war, Bernard Goodman and Lili Gutmann returned to discover their Heemstede estate had been emptied of its artworks. They reported this loss to authorities across the Netherlands, France, Germany, and Britain and initiated efforts to reclaim their possessions. While some recovery occurred between 1954 and 1960, numerous items remained unaccounted for. After Bernard's passing, his sons Nick and Simon continued pursuing restitution.
The Degas pastel
In October 1995, Simon Goodman identified an image of one missing piece within a 1994 catalogue from the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The work, Edgar Degas’ pastel over monotype titled Landscape with Smokestacks ("Paysage Avec Fumée de Cheminées," 1890), was listed as part of Daniel C. Searle’s collection—a pharmaceutical magnate based near Chicago.
Originally owned by Max Silberberg and sold at auction in Paris, Friedrich Gutmann acquired the piece in 1931 before entrusting it to Paul Graupe et Cie in Paris for protection in 1939. The painting traveled through Switzerland to New York by 1951 and was subsequently purchased by collector Emile Wolf. In 1987, Searle acquired it for $850,000 after consulting specialists at Chicago’s Art Institute, where he served as a lifelong trustee.
The provenance traced through Hans Wendland—a German art dealer notorious for smuggling Nazi-looted works into Switzerland for resale. Legal analyst Willi Korte emphasized Wendland’s involvement in trafficking art plundered during the Nazi era. Searle’s legal team contended that Wendland was not widely recognized in 1987; Douglas Druick, curator at the Art Institute, corroborated unfamiliarity with Wendland’s name at that time.
Upon discovering Searle’s possession of the painting (which was kept in storage at the Art Institute), the Goodman brothers formally requested its restitution as an act of "justice" and recovery of family property. While Searle’s attorneys expressed empathy toward victims of Nazi thefts, they argued this case should be treated like any other involving disputed art ownership. In 1998, defense counsel Howard J. Trienens asserted that the Goodmans lacked definitive proof of title and cautioned against destabilizing art markets through such claims. Although Searle expressed sympathy for their plight, he maintained a firm stance: "I will not be extorted."
Legal proceedings
Following a year of ineffective negotiations between the Goodmans and Searle's legal representatives, the Goodmans initiated litigation against Searle in 1996, first filing in New York and subsequently in Chicago. This lawsuit was one of the earliest in the United States where an individual pursued legal action over art looted during World War II, underscoring a pivotal moment in highlighting Nazi plunder on a global scale.
A conference call held on October 31, 1997, did not lead to a resolution, resulting in the trial being deferred until 1998. On July 30, 1998, a federal judge denied Searle's motion to dismiss the case and scheduled a jury trial for September 9. The dispute attracted widespread national media coverage, including a 60 Minutes episode aired on January 19, 1997, followed by the British documentary "Making a Killing," which was broadcast on Chicago’s PBS station on August 10, 1998. This documentary presented evidence indicating that the Degas painting acquired by Searle had been stolen by Nazis, challenging his refusal to concede this fact.
In response to mounting criticism directed at Searle in Chicago, the National Gallery of London became the first prominent institution to conduct a review of its collection for artworks looted by the Nazis. Furthermore, German authorities returned a stolen Van Gogh painting in 1999. These events set the stage for an eventual settlement reached outside of court.
Settlement
On August 7, 1998, Nick Goodman reached out to Searle, culminating in an agreement whereby ownership of the painting was divided between Searle and the Gutmann heirs (the Goodman brothers along with Lili Gutmann). Searle contributed his portion as a gift to the Art Institute, which then acquired the family’s share. This arrangement resulted in $243,750 being paid to the Goodmans and an equivalent income tax deduction for Searle. Nick Goodman had anticipated this outcome earlier that year.
Degas’ Landscape with Smokestacks was exhibited publicly at the Art Institute on June 11, 1999, accompanied by a label stating it was "Purchased from the collection of Friedrich and Louise Gutmann and a gift of Daniel C. Searle." The Art Institute described this resolution as "precedent-setting," though this characterization faced some dispute. Additionally, a book authored by one of Searle’s attorneys attempting to defend their position was criticized as "sketchy" and "unconvincing," offering minimal new insights.
Restitution initiatives in the Netherlands
In 2002, the Dutch Government returned numerous artworks from the Dutch National Art Collections Foundation to Friedrich Gutmann’s heirs. The following year, in 2003, over ninety of these pieces were auctioned by the Goodman family at Christie's.
In 2010, Simon Goodman identified a missing sixteenth-century portrait by Hans Baldung, which was restituted by the Jane Voorhees Zimmerli Art Museum at Rutgers University in 2011; it was later sold at auction.
Additional restitutions took place with five more artworks returned by the Dutch government in 2010. In 2011, a garniture consisting of three jars and two vases along with a wooden Pietà sculpture were also restored to the Gutmann heirs.
Restitution initiatives in Germany
In July 2012, two Renaissance clocks from the Gutmann Collection were reacquired by the Landesmuseum Württemberg from his descendants.
In 2020, both the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Holocaust Claims Processing Office of the New York State Department of Financial Services announced the restitution of a sixteenth-century silver cup to Eugen Gutmann’s heirs.
See also
External links
- 1886 births
- 1944 deaths
- Art collectors from Amsterdam
- Dutch bankers
- Businesspeople from Berlin
- German emigrants to the Netherlands
- Dutch people who died in the Theresienstadt Ghetto
- Subjects of Nazi art appropriations
- Jewish art collectors
- Art and cultural repatriation after World War II
- Deaths by beating in Europe