Yesterday, Judge Preska dismissed a suit seeking to reclaim Picasso’s “The Actor” from the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The suit alleged that the painting was sold under duress in the 1930s after its owner at the time, a German Jew, fled the Nazi regime (see our original coverage here). While the opinion details the plight of the Leffmann family as they fled from Germany to Italy, Switzerland, and eventually Brazil to escape the Nazis, ultimately, the complaint did not adequately allege a claim against the Met.
Continue Reading Judge Preska: Disputed Picasso Will Stay at the Met
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Suit Against Met Alleges that $100 Million Picasso Painting Was Sold Under Duress in Nazi Germany
By Michael Keough on
The heirs to estate of the former owner of Picasso’s “The Actor” filed a complaint last week alleging that the painting, currently in the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s collection, was sold under duress in the 1930s as its owner at the time, a German Jew, fled the Nazi regime. The complaint alleges that, but for…