We are pleased to announce that the heirs of Rudolf Mosse have agreed to allow the painting "Der Frühlingssturm" by Ludwig von Hofmann to return to the "Mathildenhöhe" museum in Darmstadt. It had been restituted to the heirs and was to be auctioned by Grisebach in Berlin on 1 June. Before the auction, Grisebach was able to arrange the repurchase of the painting for Darmstadt by a German patron. He will make the painting available to the museum as a permanent loan.
The collection of Rudolf Mosses, the great Berlin newspaper publisher and philanthropist of the 1910s and 1920s, had already been put up for auction in 1934. Ludwig von Hofmann's work was then exhibited in Darmstadt for seven decades as a symbol of German Art Nouveau.
Eric Bartko, spokesman for the Mosse heirs, emphasises: "We are delighted that this major work of German Art Nouveau is returning to the Mathildenhöhe in Darmstadt. The painting was of central importance to Rudolf Mosse - and it has become of central importance to Darmstadt. We are grateful that Grisebach has found a solution with a private collector to bring the painting back to Darmstadt and that the auction house has refrained from an international bidding war.
Micaela Kapitzky: "We are delighted that we were able to preserve this outstanding painting for the German public before last week's auction. We would like to thank the heirs for their willingness to co-operate and the patron for his generosity."