Robert Graetz (October 5, 1878 – December 31, 1945 ), was a German Jewish textile industrialist and art collector in Berlin who was deported by the Nazis and died at

Auschwitz Auschwitz, or Oświęcim, was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It consisted of Auschw ...

Early life and family

Born in Berlin on October 5, 1878 into a German Jewish family, Graetz's brother, Hugo, was an art dealer. Graetz married Bluma Shifra (April 28, 1934-April 18.1940) and had a daughter, Hilda Graetz (Ruschkewitz)

Entrepreneur

Graetz's business, Firma für Damenmäntel Glass & Graetz, specialised in women’s coats and suits.

Art collection

Graetz built a collection of around 200 works by artists including

Otto Dix Wilhelm Heinrich Otto Dix (; 2 December 1891 – 25 July 1969) was a German painter and Printmaking, printmaker, noted for his ruthless and harshly realistic depictions of German society during the Weimar Republic and the brutality of war. Alon ...

Emil Nolde Emil Nolde (born Hans Emil Hansen; 7 August 1867 – 13 April 1956) was a German painter and printmaker. He was one of the first Expressionists, a member of Die Brücke, and was one of the first oil painting and watercolor painters of the early ...

Karl Schmidt-Rottluff Karl Schmidt-Rottluff (Karl Schmidt until 1905; 1 December 1884 – 10 August 1976) was a German expressionist painter and printmaker; he was one of the four founders of the artist group Die Brücke. Life and work Schmidt-Rottluff was born in R ...

and

Käthe Kollwitz Käthe Kollwitz ( born Schmidt; 8 July 186722 April 1945) was a German artist who worked with painting, printmaking (including etching, lithography and woodcuts) and sculpture. Her most famous art cycles, including ''The Weavers'' and ''The Peasa ...

Death at Auschwitz

He remained in Berlin after his two children fled. His company, villa, and art collection were confiscated and he was deported to a Nazi concentration camp in 1942. He died at Auschwitz.

Claims for restitution

Most of the artworks from Graetz's collection have not been recovered and are listed on the German Lost Art Foundation website. In 2011 the German Advisory Commission considered a claim for two paintings by

at Berlin’s

Neue Nationalgalerie The Neue Nationalgalerie (New National Gallery) at the Kulturforum is a museum for modern art in Berlin, with its main focus on the 20th century. It is part of the National Gallery of the Berlin State Museums. The museum building and its sculpt ...

. 2019, the German Lost Art Foundation offered funding to help research the missing works. In 2021 the German Advisory Commission rejected a claim for a painting by Lovis Corith. In 2023, Christie's brokered a settlement for

Max Pechstein Hermann Max Pechstein (31 December 1881 – 29 June 1955) was a German expressionist painter and printmaker and a member of the Die Brücke group. He fought on the Western Front during World War I and his art was classified as Degenerate A ...

's ''Still Life With a Cup'', which Graetz's daughter Hilda sold as a refugee in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

. Pechstein's granddaughter provided sales records to help identify the painting In December 2023, the family filed a claim against the

Hamburger Kunsthalle The Hamburger Kunsthalle is the art museum of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg, Germany. It is one of the largest art museums in the country. It consists of three connected buildings, dating from 1869 (main building), 1921 (Kuppelsaal) and ...

for the restitution of Paula Modersohn-Becker: ''Girl's Head'' which the widow of Nazi art dealer Konrad Doebbeke had donated to the museum''.''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Graetz, Robert 1878 births German art collectors Jewish art collectors 1945 deaths German Jews who died in the Holocaust German people who died in Auschwitz concentration camp Subjects of Nazi art appropriations