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The descendants of a Jewish pair have initiated legal proceedings against The Metropolitan Museum of Art, claiming that a the Dutch artist canvas was seized by Nazi forces.

Case History

As stated in the lawsuit, the Stern couple purchased the painting, titled Olive Picking, in the year 1935. The following year, they were compelled to leave their residence in the German city of Munich on the eve of the Second World War.

The legal action contends that the Met, which obtained the painting in the 1950s for a significant sum, should have known it was almost certainly confiscated property. The heirs are now demanding the repatriation of the artwork along with compensation.

Since the end of WWII, this plundered piece has been frequently and covertly traded, bought and sold in and through New York, alleges the lawsuit.

Forced Emigration

The Sterns departed from the city of Munich to America in 1936 with their offspring due to persecution by the Nazis. Yet, they were prevented from taking the painting, which was created by the Dutch post-impressionist in 1889.

Before they left, Nazi authorities designated the painting as German cultural property and forbade the Sterns from bringing it with them. Following authorization from a regime representative, a agent appointed by the regime disposed of the artwork on the couple's behalf. Yet, the money from the auction were held in a restricted account, which the Nazis later took.

Later Transactions

By 1948, or shortly after, the painting was brought to New York and was bought by a prominent figure, one of America's wealthiest people. Subsequently, it was exchanged through a art dealer to the institution, which then transferred it to wealthy Greek businessman Basil Goulandris and his spouse, Mrs. Goulandris, in 1972.

Basil and Elise set up the Basil & Elise Goulandris Foundation in the late 1970s, which runs a gallery in the Greek capital where the masterpiece is currently exhibited.

Legal Arguments

The foundation and a living relative of Basil Goulandris are listed as respondents. The lawsuit claims that the defendants and its associated organizations have hidden and obscured the painting's ownership and location from the heirs.

Even now, the defendants continue to obscure the manner and time the BEG came into ownership of the Painting; the family's possession of the Painting from 1935 to 1938; and the truth that the regime stole the Painting from the Stern family, forced the family into disposing of it via a Nazi-appointed agent, and confiscated the funds of the sale.

Earlier Lawsuits

The family filed a comparable case in CA in 2022, but it was rejected in 2024. An further action was also denied in spring 2025.

Institution's Statement

The legal action argues that the institution's buying of the piece was sanctioned by a curator, the institution's specialist of European art and a leading authority on art theft during the Nazi era. The curator and the museum knew or should have known that the Painting had almost certainly been stolen by the regime.

The institution issued a statement that it takes seriously its ongoing pledge to address claims from the Nazi period.

A spokesperson remarked: Not once during The Met's ownership of the artwork was there any documentation that it had earlier been possessed to the Stern family – indeed, that knowledge did not become available until many years after the masterpiece left the institution's holdings.

The museum's disposal of the Van Gogh met the Met's guidelines for deaccessioning – specifically, it was noted that the work was judged to be of lesser quality than additional artworks of the same type in the holdings. While The Met respectfully stands by its position that this work entered the collection and was removed lawfully and well within all rules and regulations, the institution is open to and will review any additional details that emerges.

Goulandris Statement

A lawyer representing the foundation said: BEG is a renowned institution in Greece. The action to take legal action against the Foundation and the Goulandris family in the America upon misleadingly incomplete allegations was already thrown out, on two occasions. We are certain it will be a third time.