News
Looted Kandinsky Work Restored To Jewish Heirs Fetches $45M
SPAIN — Wassily Kandinsky’s painting “The Kiss” sold at auction for $44.9 million after spending decades in a Dutch museum after its Jewish owner was killed in the Holocaust.
At a Sotheby’s auction in London on Wednesday night, “Murnau mit Kirche II” (also known as “Murnau with Church II”) sold for a new record price for the Russian artist. The brightly colored landscape of a Bavarian village finished in 1910 foreshadows the bold abstract imagery of Kandinsky’s later work.
The Van Abbemuseum in Eindhoven has returned a painting to the German Jewish art collectors Johanna Margarete Stern and Siegbert Samuel Stern’s family in the past year.
After Siegbert Stern passed away in 1935, Johanna was compelled to sell a large portion of her collection to escape Nazi Germany and settle in Amsterdam. Soon after the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands, she was taken into custody and ultimately perished in the Auschwitz concentration camp in 1944.
According to Sotheby’s, the money raised will be split among the 13 surviving Kandinsky Stern heirs and used to investigate what happened to the collection.
Some 139 works of art were discovered in Dutch museums in 2013 to have been stolen by the Nazis. These works included paintings by masters such as Kandinsky, Henri Matisse, and Paul Klee.
paintings by masters such as Kandinsky, Henri Matisse, and Paul Klee
The Jewish family who originally owned “Painting With Houses” by Kandinsky will receive it back from Amsterdam in 2021. The city of Amsterdam paid $600 at auction for this piece of Stedelijk Museum artwork in 1940.
The global head of restitution at Sotheby’s, Lucian Simmons, pointed out that this year marks the silver anniversary of a Washington, DC, international conference on looted art from 1998, kandinksywhich concluded that previous attempts to return looted art hadn’t gone far enough.
Since then, “the restitution department at Sotheby’s has worked with many heirs and families to reunite them with their stolen property and, simultaneously, to help retell their stories and celebrate their lives,” Simmons said.
Another recently restored and auctioned-off piece at Sotheby’s was “Dance on the Beach” by Edvard Munch, which brought in $16.9 million (£10.5 million).
After its Jewish owner, Curt Glaser, was forced to flee Nazi Germany; he sold the massive painting to Norwegian ship owner Thomas Olsen in the 1930s. The painting was one of several created for theatre impresario Max Reinhardt.
Olsen hid his extensive Munch collection, including a reproduction of “The Scream,” during the Nazi occupation of Norway in World War II.
The painting was sold “subject to an agreement” between the Olsen and Glaser families, according to Sotheby’s transaction description.
SOURCE – (AP)
News
Britain Must Be Ready for War in 3 Years, Warns New Army Chief
The new head of the Army has stated that Britain must be prepared to fight a war within three years.
Gen Sir Roland Walker has issued a warning about a variety of risks in what he calls a “increasingly volatile” environment.
However, he stated that war was not inevitable and that the Army had “just enough time” to prepare to prevent conflict.
He stated that the Army’s fighting capacity would be doubled by 2027 and tripled by the end of the decade.
Gen Walker warned that the Britain was under threat from a “axis of upheaval” in his first speech as Prime Minister on Tuesday.
Among the primary concerns confronting the Britain in the next years, as noted by the general in a briefing, is an enraged Russia, which may seek vengeance on the West for helping Ukraine, regardless of who wins the war.
He stated: “It doesn’t matter how it finishes. I believe Russia will emerge from it weaker objectively – or completely – but still very, very dangerous and seeking some form of retaliation for what we have done to assist Ukraine.”
Britain’s Government Defence Review and Military Challenges
He also warned that China was determined to retake Taiwan, and Iran was likely to seek nuclear weapons.
He stated that the threats they posed may become particularly acute in the next three years, and that these countries had formed a “mutual transactional relationship” since the war in Ukraine, sharing weaponry and technology.
However, he stated that the path to conflict was not “inexorable” if the UK re-established credible land troops to assist its deterrent strategy for avoiding war.
In his speech, he described his force of slightly over 70,000 regular troops as a “medium-sized army” and made no direct call for additional resources or men.
However, he pushed the British Army to adapt swiftly, focussing on technology such as artificial intelligence and weaponry rather than numbers.
His ultimate goal is for the Army to be capable of destroying an opponent three times its size.
This would entail firing quicker and farther, he said, aided by lessons learnt from the Ukraine war.
The general’s speech at the Royal United Services Institute land warfare conference comes only one week after the government began a “root and branch” defence review to “take a fresh look” at the challenges facing the armed services.
Defence Secretary John Healey launched the assessment, describing the existing status of the armed forces as “hollowed-out” and stating that “procurement waste and neglected morale cannot continue”.
According to the most recent Ministry of Defence (MoD) numbers from April 2024, the Britain’s regular Army forces total 75,325 troops (excluding Gurkhas and volunteers).
That figure has been declining in recent years, as recruiting has failed to match retention. The previous Conservative administration lowered the planned headcount from 82,000 to 72,500 by 2025.
Members of the NATO military alliance have agreed to spend at least 2% of GDP on defence by 2024, but several countries are unlikely to fulfil this goal.
The Britain presently spends 2.3% of its GDP on defence. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has previously stated that the defence review will include a “roadmap” for increasing this to 2.5%, however he has yet to provide a date for this promise.
Source: BBC
News
Katie Ledecky Hopes For Clean Races At Paris Olympics In The Aftermath Of The Chinese Doping Scandal
PARIS — Katie Ledecky is looking for clean Olympic races. On Wednesday, Hope had pretty much reached her limit.
The American swimmer hopes to add to her six gold medals as she competes in the 400, 800, and 1,500 meters at the Paris Games. Her program starts with the heavy 400 on Saturday, featuring Ariarne Titmus and Summer McIntosh.
Katie Ledecky | ESPN Image
Katie Ledecky Hopes For Clean Races At Paris Olympics In The Aftermath Of The Chinese Doping Scandal
The 27-year-old Katie is competing in her fourth Summer Olympics, but the first since a doping scandal involving almost two dozen Chinese swimmers who tested positive for a banned chemical before the Tokyo Games — yet were permitted to compete with no consequences. The controversy has raised serious worries regarding the effectiveness of anti-doping initiatives.
Katie Ledecky | Vogue Image
“I hope everyone here is going to be competing clean this week,” Ledecky claimed. “But what truly counts is, were they training cleanly? Hopefully this has been the case. Hopefully, there has been worldwide testing.”
The International Olympic Committee has expressed concern over the ongoing US investigation into possible doping by Chinese swimmers. While awarding the 2034 Winter Olympics to Salt Lake City on Wednesday, the IOC urged Utah officials to do whatever they could to stop the FBI investigation.
“I think everyone’s heard what the athletes think,” Katie added. “They seek transparency. They want more answers to the remaining questions. At this point, we are here to race. We are going to race whoever is in the lane next to us.
“We are not paid to conduct the tests, so we trust those who follow their regulations. That applies both today and in the future.
Katie Ledecky | ESPN Image
Katie Ledecky Hopes For Clean Races At Paris Olympics In The Aftermath Of The Chinese Doping Scandal
SOURCE | AP
News
London Heatwave Alert: High Temperatures Set to Soar to 29C Next Week
As the summer holidays begin, London may experience an official heatwave with temperatures reaching up to 29 degrees Celsius.
The Met Office predicts a long period of sunny and dry weather for London after a soggy spring and summer.
After a cloudy day on Saturday, temperatures are expected to reach 27C on Sunday, with lots of sunlight.
On Monday and Tuesday, temperatures are forecast to peak at 29 degrees Celsius. Monday is forecast to offer more sunlight, while Tuesday may see some gloomy weather.
Temperatures are expected to remain in the high 20s next week, with lows of approximately 18C.
According to the Met Office, a heatwave is “an extended period of hot weather relative to the expected conditions of the area at that time of year, which may be accompanied by high humidity.”
In the United Kingdom, a heatwave is proclaimed when daily temperatures meet or surpass a certain level for at least three consecutive days.
In London, the heatwave threshold is 28 degrees Celsius.
The Met Office reported that the UK is experiencing hotter and wetter weather on average due to climate change.
The UK experienced its warmest May and April on record this year, despite damp and dismal conditions in many areas.
According to the Met Office’s State Of The UK Climate 2023 report published on Thursday, the UK experienced historic levels of extreme weather last year.
In the United Kingdom, 2023 was the second warmest year on record, bringing storms, flooding, strong heatwaves, and rising sea levels; only 2022 was warmer.
It was 0.8°C higher than the average from 1991 to 2020, and 1.66°C higher than the 1961 to 1990 average.
However, 2023 will be a “cool year” in comparison to 2100, based on the planet’s warming trajectory.
The government’s plan to adapt to the hazards presented by climate change is currently being challenged in the High Court by campaigners who allege the Tory administration’s July 2023 National Adaptation Programme (NAP) fails to adequately address 61 concerns.
Source: The Standard
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