The Washington Post notes two American museums battling in court to prevent works claimed as Nazi-loot from returning to the families who claim them as rightfully theirs.  “I find it outrageous, and I’m embarrassed,” says Oklahoma state Rep. Paul Wesselhoft of the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art at the University of Oklahoma, one of the museums refusing to return a work. “With this artwork, we have definitive proof that it was stolen. We have copies of the Nazi documents. As an Oklahoman, I think it’s a moral outrage.” (more…)

Following the death of Cornelius Gurlitt, the works he had willed to the Kunstmuseum Bern in Switzerland have hung in limbo, the subject of a dispute filed by his cousin Uta Werner, which questions the authenticity and authority of his will.  “The Board of Trustees regrets this delay, in particular because it will impede the settlement of restitution cases that have already been clarified and endorsed by the Kunstmuseum Bern, but the circumstances are beyond its control,” the museum said in a statement. (more…)

The court case over payment to three trustees of the Robert Rauschenberg Revocable Trust has been settled this week by a Florida judge, who approved a payment of $24.6 million for “extraordinary services” in preserving the artist’s legacy, much to the disappointment of Rauschenberg’s estate, which is considering its options in the face of the ruling.  “We are reviewing our legal options and will pursue the course of action that is in the best interest of the foundation,” says Christopher Rauschenberg, the artist’s son and president of the foundation. (more…)

MOCA is drawing criticism this week, following the loan of a Frank Stella painting to a Culver City art gallery, which many have called a conflict of interest.  The work Ctesiphon I, was loaned to Honor Fraser Gallery with approval of  the Acquisition and Collection Committee.  “MOCA is committed to loan artworks to encourage public enjoyment of objects,” MOCA said in an official statement. “MOCA lends to commercial art galleries only on a case-by-case basis.” (more…)

The British Council has confirmed reports from earlier this month that a YBA show planned for Moscow has been cancelled.  The show had suffered from lack of funding, following the withdrawal of potential sponsorship funds from Russian patrons Vladimir and Ekaterina Semenikhin of the Ekaterina Foundation over harsh Western criticism of Russian involvement in Ukraine.   (more…)

The Guggenheim Foundation has responded to the lawsuit filed by descendants of Peggy Guggenheim, calling the lawsuit “frivolous” and contradictory.  The original suit criticized the Foundation of using Peggy Guggenheim’s Venice home, donated to house her collection, as the site of numerous outside exhibitions, a charge the Foudation dismisses wholehandedly.  “They insist that no works other than Peggy Guggenheim’s be exhibited in the palazzo or the garden,” the statement says. “Yet between 1999 and 2013, they were instrumental in organising 14 exhibitions of works entirely foreign to the Peggy Guggenheim Collection.” (more…)

Proxy Adviser Glass, Lewis and Co. has backed Sotheby’s Board Nominations in the wake of Daniel Loeb’s continued pressure on the company.  “In this case, we believe the Dissident has identified certain areas of concern,” the company says in a statement, “but ultimately has fallen short of making a compelling case that additional changes in the boardroom are warranted at this time beyond those already implemented by the Company.” (more…)

The dispute over the movement of Picasso’s Le Tricorne tapestry from the Four Seasons restaurant in New York has resulted in a lawsuit, filed by the Landmarks Conservancy (which owns the piece), in an attempt to prevent any movement that could damage or destroy the work.  “We’re just trying to do our duty and trying to keep a lovely interior landmark intact,” says Peg Breen, president of the conservancy. (more…)

Tate Britain head Penelope Curtis is under attack this week by critic Waldemar Januszczak, who has called for the museum director to step down or be replaced, citing low attendance and a series of allegedly poor exhibition plans.  “I first noticed what an appalling exhibition-maker she was when she co-curated the Modern British Sculpture show at the Royal Academy in 2011,” Januszczak wrote. “It was, quite simply, one of the worst exhibitions I have ever seen. Subsequent shows at Tate Britain have continued the trend.” (more…)

The Museum of Contemporary Art North Miami has filed suit against North Miami for breach of contract, claiming that the city has allegedly ceased funding and maintenance to the museum as it pursues a merger with the Bass Museum in Miami Beach.   “The city’s neglect has put the very existence of our institution at risk,” says MOCA NoMi trustee Irma Braman. “And our current building has been an impediment to our services and mission for too long. We are dedicated to serving our public and we hope the city will move forward with us in a collegial and productive conversation so that MOCA can maintain a vibrant presence in North Miami and throughout the region.” (more…)

Michael Werner Gallery is currently embroiled in a $1.35 million lawsuit with South Korea’s Gwangju Biennale Foundation over damage to three sculptures by James Lee Byars.  The works were chipped on the return trip, and attempts to collect insurance through a South Korean insurance company have proved futile.  “Unfortunately, risks are inherent in any loan, and it is devastating and embarrassing when anything like this happens,” said Massimo Gioni, who curated the 2010 event and went on to curate this year’s Venice Biennale. (more…)

The long-disputed valuation of the Detroit Institute of Arts’ collection has finally been completed, with a final valuation that falls somewhere between $454 million to $867 million.  This valuation factors in a Van Gogh self-portrait valued at $150 million on its own, as well as a Bruegel the Elder painting that could sell for anywhere between $100 and $200 million.  (more…)

A lawsuit over the ownership of an Andy Warhol portrait of the late actress Farrah Fawcett has been settled in favor of her husband, actor Ryan O’Neil.  The lawsuit settles a dispute between O’Neal and the University of Texas in Austin, which had received the work from Fawcett’s estate, even though O’Neal maintained the work had been given to him as a gift from Warhol. (more…)

The ongoing dispute over the future of the Detroit Institute of Arts has the museum considering a transfer to state ownership.  As DIA’s collection is appraised at the behest of emergency manager Kevyn Orr, the museum is weighing options that would allow it to accept state funding while providing needed monetary support to the city, including through long-term leases of art works.  “I’m deferring to them to save themselves,” Orr said. (more…)

The Russian government has refused to reunite the collections Ivan Morozov and Sergei Shchukin, which has stood as a point of contention between the Pushkin Museum in Moscow and the State Hermitage in St. Petersburg over the past months. Both institutions currently own parts of the collection, which was divided in half after Stalin shuttered the Museum of New Western Art in 1948.  Former director of the Pushkin Museum Irina Antonova spoke out on the decision last week on Moscow television, stating a hope that the works would be reunited.  “I believe that in the end common sense must triumph,” she said. “We will have a state that will understand what it is to have the kind of museum that we don’t have in Moscow, a top museum of world art in the capital.” (more…)

A museum show intended to heal relations between the United States and Italy over claims of looted work has encountered turbulence, after Sicilian officials have refused to ship several works over concerns over tourism.  When asked about the region’s refusal to cooperate, Sicilian official Mariarita Sgarlata noted:  “How would an American tourist react who, trusting his Frommer’s travel guide,  has gone out of his way to visit the island of Mozia to admire this work of art in its original setting, only to discover that the statue is in Tokyo or St. Petersburg?” (more…)

Two of Russia’s most prominent museums, the Hermitage Museum and the Pushkin Museum, are currently embroiled in a dispute over the collections of Ivan Morozov and Sergei Shchukin, which had been distributed between two institutions when Stalin shut down the State Museum in 1948.  The debate was brought to light this year, when the Pushkin’s director, Irina Antonova, appealed to President Vladimir Putin on live television, asking him to recreate the institution in Moscow, raising ire over the rightful home of the works, which include pieces by Picasso and Matisse.  “The expert advice seems to be all on the Hermitage side—but you never know,” says Geraldine Norman, an advisor at The Hermitage. (more…)

A major dispute between board members of the Hilma af Klint Foundation is casting a pall on the first major retrospective of the artist in her home country of Sweden.  The dispute arises over several board members’ desires to  sell of works to fund a museum to “anthroposophy,” a school of thought originated by Rudolf Steiner. Ulf  Wagner, one of the accused board members has responded, saying “Legally we would not be allowed to sell her works,” before continuing that this would only apply to major works.  (more…)

The passing of Merton J. Simpson, a notable artist and prominent dealer of African art, has set his inheritance into a state of uncertainty, with familial infighting leaving his estate without the money to bury his body, and the future of his impressive collection of works up in the air.  “I knew that when he passed, it was going to get really ugly,” said Luna Devin Crystal, a friend and employee of Mr. Simpson’s. (more…)

More conflicts have come to light in the recent dispute between the board members of the Cy Twombly Foundation.  A lawsuit, filed on Wednesday in Delaware state court, accuses director Thomas Saliba and lawyer Ralph Lerner of taking an unauthorized $300,000 in investment fees from the organization.  “Lerner and Saliba have refused to provide a copy of the trust or disclose their trustee commissions, which makes it impossible to confirm the extent of their wrongdoing, but the facts currently known raise very serious questions about Lerner’s and Saliba’s conduct,” the lawsuit said. (more…)

A Delaware judge has been asked to step in on a dispute between the board members of a foundation established by late American painter Cy Twombly.  The complaint, filed by Twombly’s lawyer Ralph Lerner, seeks to reinstate Twombly’s son Alessandro to the board in order to break a deadlock between the current members over the forced removal of treasurer Thomas Saliba.  Lerner claims that the dispute has left the foundation unable to manage its $1.5 billion in assets. (more…)