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Carol Ann Hawk

Speech outline
Comm 1010
Professor Haslam

Lady in Gold

Intro

Art is important to my family. My mother took my sisters and I to art galleries, plays,

concerts, musicals, films and documentaries for as long as I can rememberwhich led to my

love of art culture and its history. The Bloch Bauer Family were well-known patrons and lovers

of art. I first saw the painting known as the Lady in Gold when I was twelve and it is still my

favorite painting. I started to learn and study about art theft that took place in World War II.

Topic 1

What is the most recognized art piece in the world? The answer is the Mona Lisa by

Leonardo Da Vinci, Frances most famous painting. It hangs in the Louvre. The French country

would never give it up. People died in World War II to protect it and other priceless works of art.

The Lady in Gold painting by Gustav Klimt was Austrias pride and joy, their very own Mona

Lisa. But unlike the Mona Lisa, displayed as a piece for public viewing for hundreds of years,

the golden painting of Adele Bloch Bauer was like a personal photograph for her husband.

The topic of Nazi art theft has been brought up into public conversations in recent years

with the documentary of Rape of Europa; book and movie The Monuments Men; even in Utah, a

painting was donated to the Utah Museum of Fine Arts and a researcher Nancy Yeide had

discovered that the painting "Les Amoureux Jeunes (The Young Lovers)" by Francois Boucher

(1707-70) was a painting stolen by Nazis in World War II. Between the years of 1933 and 1945,

Nazis stole thousands of pieces of artwork from museums, galleries, churches and private

collectors in occupied countries. The Nazis made detailed notes on their thefts, some of the
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documents even had the artist's name, the names and addresses of the rightful owners of the

artworks. The Utah Museum of Fine Arts took great care to research and return the painting to

the family it was taken from. (Dave Gagon, Deseret News 2004)

There are still over 100,000 missing works of art stolen by the Nazis and unlikely to be

recovered. Artwork in private collections are harder to regulate and impossible to be found. The

Klimt gold painting of Adele is worth today at $150 million and was sold in 2006 at the world

record setting price $135 million. (HistoryvsHollywood.com, 2015)

Topic 2

In the online article by the Neue Galerie the author told how the Bloch-Bauer family had

one of the most impressive and renowned collection of art in all of Vienna, Austria. Ferdinand

Bloch-Bauer is an excellent example of how Jewish Patronage helped fund beautiful works of

arts. In 1903 Ferdinand Bloch-Bauer hired the artist Gustav Klimt to paint a portrait of his young

wife Adele Bloch-Bauer. Gustav sketched many ideas for the painting which Ferdinand bought

as well. The Paintings original title is "Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I." This painting was the

highlight of Klimts Golden period. Adele also draws distinction because she is the only person

to be painted twice by Klimt. Three times if you count the head of Judith which Adele modeled

for. The painting was completed in 1907. (Neue Galerie New York, 09/7/2015)

The authors Muller, Tatzkow and Lauder wrote about how Klimt made his spectacular

painting. The painting was made with gold and silver leaf with decorative motifs using a binder

of chalk. Klimt painted the face and hands of Adele painted by using oil paints. Klimt drew

hundreds of pre sketches of Adele for the preliminaries. The painting shows Adele adorned in a

stunning dress and diamond necklace, sitting on a chair, with detailed motifs of golden shapes.

(Muller, M., Tatzkow, M., & Lauder, R. (2010)

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Topic 3

The Author Krista shares that Ferdinand purchased a second portrait of Adele and other

paintings from Klimt that were landscapes. According to Maria Altman, the niece of Adele and

Ferdinand, Adele was her aunt by marriage and blood. Marias aunt and uncle lived in affluent

and wealthy mansion in which many expensive paintings hung on walls, and Adele entertained

the elite of Austria society and artists. In 1925 Adele Bloch Bauer died of meningitis at 43-years-

old.

Maria Altman shared with the author her memories of her aunt: Adele was a socialist,

politically involved and intelligent. Maria recalled that her aunt was tall and elegant, but

melancholic. Her parents arranged Adeles marriage and she suffered two miscarriages and the

death of a three-day-old infant. After her death, Ferdinand turned Adeles room into a shrine in

honor of his wife. He hung all of the Klimt paintings he owned in that room.

In the year of 1937, Fritz Altman married Maria, Fritz was an aspiring opera singer.

Ferdinand gifted his wifes same diamond necklace and earrings in the painting to his niece as a

wedding present. The following year Hitlers soldiers marched on Austria and as per Maria

Altman, the Austrian people cheered the Nazis as they marched through the streets. Maria was

home alone, a week later when a Gestapo official knocked on her front door and took her Aunts

diamond necklace, earrings and her engagement ring. Her treasured gifts ended up in the hands

of Hermann Goerings wife. Marias husband was arrested and held hostage so his brother who

owned a successful cashmere factor would sign it over to the Nazis. (Kirsta, A. (2006, July 10)

Krista informs readers that the painting and jewelry werent the only valuables stolen

from the family. Marias father, a lawyer and musician, had his Stradivarius cello confiscated.

The Gestapo didnt ask, they just took what they wanted from Jewish families. The Altmans
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escaped to America leaving behind everything. As Maria later found out, her Uncle Ferdinand

had bequeathed what was left of his fortune to his two nieces and nephew his heirs, which wasnt

much as it his fortune and properties were seized by various Nazis. Unknown to the family, their

Klimt paintings had ended up in the Belvedere Gallery in the heart of Austria. The Gallery

refused to return the Klimt paintings to the heirs, citing Adeles will stipulating the paintings be

donated after her death to the gallery. It wasnt until 1998 that Maria Altman found out the

paintings had been stolen, a total of three times, first by the Nazis, and twice by the Austrians

(Kirsta, A. (2006, July 10)

The legal court documents on the case reveal that a Nazi Lawyer named Dr. Erich Fuhrer

had taken possession of the Klimt paintings and organized the sale of three of the paintings. The

Austrian government in 1946 made a law to declare that any transactions motivated by Nazis to

be null and void. But the government left a loophole, that excluded any artwork that was

important to Austrias cultural heritage. Allegedly, the Austrian government profited by forcing

Jewish people who had art stolen from them to donate or trade for artwork the Austrians didnt

mind parting with. An Austrian journalist in 1998 was investigating the Belvedere Gallery files,

found that neither Adele nor her husband had donated the paintings to the gallery. The journalist

published his findings and noted that the gallery had received the paintings with a letter saying

Heil Hitter from the doctor. Upon finding this out, Maria attempted to have the paintings

returned. However, a committee blocked her claim,that by stating that Adeles request in her will

made a legally binding commitment that Ferdinand was required to give the paintings to the

Belvedere Gallery. When Maria decided to take her case to court in Austria, she was hampered

by high financial costs to fight her case in the courts. Maria withdrew her suit in Austrian courts
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and instead refiled in American courts. (International Legal Materials,Vol. 43, No. 6 2004 p

1426-1427)

Maria and her lawyer contested the Belvedere Gallerys claim to the paintings based on

facts: such as that when Adele died she only requested her husband donate the paintings after he

died. But in 1938 Ferdinand was forced to flee to Switzerland and his assets were stolen by

Nazis. Ferdinand died in 1945 and his will left everything to his heirs, making Maria and her

siblings the lawful owners of the six Klimt paintings. In 1948 Marias lawyer had wrongly told

her that the Galley owned the paintings. Maria in 1999 sued the Austrian gallery over the fact

that they were mass producing the image of her aunt and making a profit from it, especially in

America via Barnes and Noble Bookstores. Marias lawyer argued that property was taken in a

manner that violates international law. The fact remains that the six Klimt paintings legally

belonged to Maria Altman which is why the U.S. supreme court awarded the paintings to Maria,

as the conduct of how the gallery acquired the paintings was unlawful. (International Legal

Materials,Vol. 43, No. 6 2004 p 1437-1439)

Stamberg writes that not only did the Nazis steal the painting from the family but they

stole the painting subjects identity. The portrait of Adele was displayed under the title of Lady

in Gold instead of its original title. Without the tie of the Jewish name the painting was

appropriate to be displayed under the rule of Hitler's Third Reich. Her image in the painting was

turned into a icon. (Stamberg, Susa 2015)

Again, it is emphasized in the online article Woman in Gold History vs Hollywood that

the Nazi curator Bruno Grimschitz of the Austrian gallery changed the title of the gold painting

to hide the fact that the subject was a Jewish woman. He first changed it to Golden Portrait

then to the well-known title of the Lady in Gold. While Adeles will stated that she wished for
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her husband donate the paintings so they could be for the public in the Austrian Gallery, her

husband reasoned while he was in exile in Switzerland that as he paid for the paintings, they

belonged to him. He changed his own will accordingly. (Woman in Gold History vs Hollywood

2015)

The online article about The Woman in Gold | Christies, described Marias long fight to

regain the Klimt Paintings. She was willing to compromise and offered to make an arrangement

with the Austrian government but they were uncooperative in coming to a compromise with

Maria. After years of legal battles, Maria won and set legal precedent for other Jewish stolen art

cases. When Maria was reunited with the paintings, she sold the Paintings to a private collector

with the stipulation that the portrait of her Aunt Adele will always be on display for the public to

enjoy. (The Woman in Gold | Christies. (2016, June 15)

Closing

My interest in art has lead me to learning about art history. Im fascinated by this one womans

story and this painting takes on more meaning for me. Before it was just pretty image, now

knowing why and how the painting came to be, makes it a more enriching experience; and I hope

it has brought you awareness of its beauty and the story behind this painting.

Recommended reading and watch list if you want to learn more on the topic:

Rape of Europa, a documentary, The Monuments Men, a film based on a true story,

The Monuments Men, a book, Woman in Gold, a film based on a true story, Hitlers Art Thief, a

book, Stealing Klimt, a documentary

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Works Cited

Photos

1.Klimt, G. (2005, May 19). Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer I [Photograph found in Neue Galerie]
New York, New York]. Retrieved October 21, 2017, from
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Gustav_Klimt_046.jpg (Originally photographed
1907)
The Yorck Project: 10.000 Meisterwerke der Malerei. DVD-ROM, 2002.
ISBN 3936122202. Distributed by DIRECTMEDIA Publishing GmbH.

2.D'Ora, A., Madame . (1908). Portrait von Gustav Klimt in Jacket [Photograph].

3.U. (1915). Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer [Photograph].

4.Klimt, G. (1912). Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer II [Photograph].

5.Klimt, G. (1907). Detail of the face of Adele Bloch-Bauer from Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer
I [Photograph].

6.Collins, G. (2010, March 3). Maria Altmann at her home in Cheviot Hills, CA in 2010
[Photograph].
Cheviot Hills.

7.Da Vinci, L. (1505). Mona Lisa [Photograph]. Louvre, Salle des tats.

8.Klimt, G. (1908). The Kiss (Der Ku) [Photograph]. Vienna.

9.Klimt, G. (1901). Judith and the Head of Holofernes [Photograph]. Austrian Gallery
Belvedere, Vienna.

10.Klimt, G. (1908). Preparatory design for the decoration of the interior of Stocklet Palace,
Brussels, Belgium
[Photograph]. Vienna .
Websites

York, N. G. (2015, September 7). Gustav Klimt and Adele Bloch-Bauer: The Woman in Gold.
Retrieved October 18, 2017, from
http://www.neuegalerie.org/content/gustav-klimt-and-adele-bloch-bauer-woman-gold

Kirsta, A. (2006, July 10). Glittering prize. Retrieved October 21, 2017, from
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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/art/3653726/Glittering-prize.html

Gagon, Dave . Utah art found to be Nazi loot. DeseretNews.com, Deseret News, 26 Feb. 2004,
www.deseretnews.com/article/590045855/Utah-art-found-to-be-Nazi-loot.html.

Woman in Gold Movie vs True Story of Maria Altmann, Randy Schoenberg.

HistoryvsHollywood.com, www.historyvshollywood.com/reelfaces/woman-in-gold/.

Stamberg, Susan. Immortalized As The Woman In Gold, How A Young Jew Became A Secular
Icon. NPR, NPR, 23 June 2015,
www.npr.org/2015/06/23/416518188/immortalized-as-the-woman-in-gold-how-a-young-
jew-became-a-secular-icon.

The Woman in Gold | Christies. (2016, June 15). Retrieved October 22, 2017,
from http://www.christies.com/features/The-Woman-in-Gold-7494-1.aspx

Scholarly

UNITED STATES SUPREME COURT: REPUBLIC OF AUSTRIA V. MARIA V.

ALTMANN.
(2004).
International Legal Materials,43(6), 1425-1452. Retrieved from
http://www.jstor.org.libprox1.slcc.edu/stable/20694511

Books
Muller, M., Tatzkow, M., & Lauder, R. (2010). Lost Lives, Lost Art: Jewish Collectors, Nazi Art
Theft,
and the Quest for Justice (Illustrated ed.). Harry N. Abrams. doi:ISB 0865652635,
9780865652637