Before it is Too Late: Critical Look at "The Future for the Past"

nB: Due to great demand from friends who cannot join us in person, we have added a ticket for those of you who want to listen to the panel discussion following the tour.

Want to look at art together and think about stories behind the objects? How did they come to be where they are? Who owned them before and how world events affected trajectory of these precious objects?

Center for Art Law invites you to explore “A Future for the Past: The Bührle Collection: art, context, war and conflict” at the Kunsthaus Zürich, one of Switzerland’s leading art museums, vested with history and culture. This thought-provoking and stunning exhibition is on view only until September 28, and we want to save you from FOMO and regret for having missed the opportunity altogether.

The Bührle Collection is one of Europe’s most significant private art holdings, known for its extraordinary selection of masterpieces. Assembled by German-Swiss industrialist Emil Bührle, it includes major works by Monet, Cézanne, Van Gogh, and Picasso. The collection has been the subject of debate due to the complex provenance of some works and the collector’s controversial role in the Second World War. Its display at the Kunsthaus today invites us to hold a conversation about art, law, memory, and historical responsibility.

The afternoon will begin with introductions and guided tours (in English (and perhaps German)) of the Bührle rooms in the Kunsthaus, offering background on the collector, and the legal complexities surrounding the works. Following the tour, we will gather for a panel discussion with invited speakers, including experts in art history and museum ethics. Together, let's explore Zurich and reflect on how the museum is reframing the collection’s complex legal and cultural history, while preserving the artworks’ reputation.

Contact us with any questions and join us at the Kunsthaus Museum, Zürich CH!

ITINERARY

13h - Opening Remarks at the Lobby of the new Chipperfield Building

13h15 - Tour 1 Starts

13h30 - Tour 2 Starts

15h30 - Meeting at Karl Der Grosse for a panel discussion of the Special Exhibition and the history of the Bührle collection with a focus on provenance research and the curatorial decisions to reassess the complicated history of the art bought by Emile Bührle.

17h30 - (Extras) Reception & Dinner with participants

EVENT LOCATIONS:

Tour: Kunsthaus Zürich, Heimplatz, 8001 Zürich (Meeting at 13H)

Round Table: Karl der Grosse, Kirchgasse 14, 8001 Zürich (Meeting at 15H30)

DATE & TIME: September 4, 2025, 13:00 to 17:30 +

The cost of the event is 50 CHF or $60 per person which includes a discounted museum admission ticket (contact us if you are museum member), fee for the guided tour and a panel discussion followed by a wine reception. Payment can be made by securing your ticket here, a bank transfer or TWINT (please contact the organizers). There is a charge of 2 CHF for TWINT payments.

Transfer & Refunds: You may transfer your ticket to another visitor (by providing their name prior to the event).

Bank Transfer 50CHF

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Bank transfer: Routing number: 021000021Account number: 933578762Credit Card Payments:You may make your payment by credit card using the “Donate” option on our website. Please make a note about the purpose of your payment and include a 3% to offset the credit card processing fees.

ABOUT CENTER FOR ART LAW

Center for Art Law is a NY-based nonprofit research and education organization dedicated to advancing the understanding and practice of art law. We have an outpost in Zürich and we are pleased to invite you to explore an important temporary exhibition that tackles the difficult subject of tainted provenance, restitution and art history. Since 2017 and even earlier, through publications, programming, and partnerships, we have been serving artists, attorneys, academics, and arts professionals seeking guidance and resources at the crossroads of visual culture and legal practice.

About the Confirmed Speakers

Irina Tarsis, Esq. is an art historian and a practicing attorney admitted to the bar in New York State. She earned her Masters Degree in Art History from Harvard University and her J.D. from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law (NY). Ms. Tarsis launched the Center for Art Law as a blog in 2008/2009. Under her leadership, the Center was incorporated as a stand-alone non-profit organization in December 2017. Ms. Tarsis has served on the faculty of the Teachers College/Columbia University (2020), Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law (2012, 2017-2018) and the European Shoah Legacy Institute/Provenance Research Training Workshops in Vilnius, Lithuania (2013), Athens, Greece and Rome, Italy (2014). Her publications include articles in the IFAR Journal, Entertainment, Arts and Sports Law Journal, Cultural Heritage & Arts Review, Library and The Cultural Record, the ArtWatch UK Journal and the Institute of Art & Law’s journal, Art Antiquity and Law.

Peter J. Toren is an intellectual property attorney in Washington, D.C. where he helps individuals and companies protect their IP rights. Mr. Toren is representing his family in a case against the Federal Republic of Germany involving family art stolen during the Second World War. (Toren v. Federal Republic of Germany, 1:16-cv-01885-RJL (D.D.C.)). Prior to entering private practice with Sidley Austin LLP, Mr. Toren was a federal prosecutor and handled a number of high-profile investigations involving violations of the CFAA, Criminal Copyright, Trafficking in Counterfeit Goods and the EEA. He is the author of the leading treatise on criminal violations of intellectual property rights and computer crime, Intellectual Property & Computer Crime, (Law Journal Press), and the co-author of Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016 (Wolters Kluwer). He has published over 100 articles and won the 2010 Burton Award for Excellence in Legal Writing for his article, The Intersection of Intellectual Property and Bankruptcy Law.

Amanda BUONAIUTO, is a Brazilian lawyer with a specialization in Nazi-looted art restitution, earned through her LL.M. at the University of Bonn, Germany. With expertise in provenance research, she is responsible for leading and managing of the Nazi-Looted Art Restitution Project for the Center for Art Law. Amanda writes and lectures about restitution cases and co-organized the 2025 Art Law Conference in NYC on Nazi-era looted art disputes.

Olaf S. OSSMANN is a Swiss & German attorney who is a member at the “Studies of Jewish Law at the Humboldt University Berlin” and Member of the Board of Governors of the International Association of Jewish Lawyers (IJL). He has been a lecturer and advisor of the Rabbinerseminar Berlin as well the working group “Legal issues of looted art“ at the “Holocaust Era Asset Conference, Prag“. Mr. Ossmann is the Founding President of the “Stiftung Menschenbild, Winterthur” and serves as a Board Member of the “Eva Cassirer Stiftung, Vaduz.”

... and more!

ABOUT THE EXHIBIT

The Emil Bührle Collection contains many unique works of great art-historical value. At the same time, it is extremely controversial owing to the way in which it was acquired. This conflict needs to be acknowledged. The Kunsthaus Zürich believes that this collection should be displayed: The works themselves are in no way implicated in the unimaginable crimes committed by the National Socialists. They do, however, bear witness to them. They can encourage us to commemorate the victims of Nazi terror, remember their fates, and reassess Switzerland’s role in the Second World War.

The exhibition is a first step in an extended process. It raises questions, but can only begin to provide answers. It outlines the historical context in which the Emil Bührle Collection was assembled and reveals the close ties between the Zürcher Kunstgesellschaft and Emil Bührle. It shows the current status of provenance research into the history of some works that were owned by Jewish collectors who fell victim to Nazi persecution. The Kunsthaus wants to talk about these issues. Learn more here.

Host or Publisher Center for Art Law