The relationship between the Wildenstein Institute and art historian Marc Restellini, who has been in charge of preparing the new catalogue raisonné of Modigliani's painted works due to be published by this association, seemed to have deteriorated following a feud regarding a major painting he rejected in 1997, the daily “Le Figaro” reported on July 20th 2002.
Sued before a Paris court by collector Moshe Shaltiel-Gracian, whose Modigliani's portrait of a dark-haired woman was not considered by Restellini as a work by this famous Italian artist, the Wildenstein Institute felt necessary to ask for a warranty from the art historian in order to keep aloof from the legal dispute.
In June 1997, Restellini called Phillips, which was offering the painting for sale to inform the auction house that he did not consider it as a genuine work by Modigliani. He then sent a fax written on a sheet of paper with the Wildenstein Institute letter-head in which he reaffirmed that the painting was not by Modigliani's hand meaning he would not include it in his catalogue raisonné.
The Modigliani portrait had however an excellent pedigree. Listed in Christian Parisot's catalogue raisonné, it had been successively in the possession of the Leicester Gallery in London and the Pierre Matisse Gallery in New York before it was acquired in 1964 by the Cincinnati Museum, which in turn sold it in 1991 to Moshe Shaltiel-Gracian.
The painting was therefore withdrawn by Phillips and Moshe Shaltiel-Gracian, baffled by Restellini's opinion, launched a legal action before a New York court against the Wildenstein Institute after the art historian had informed his lawyers that no one could ask him to justify his decision, which he had taken independently.
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The relationship between the Wildenstein Institute and art historian Marc Restellini, who has been in charge of preparing the new catalogue raisonné of Modigliani's painted works due to be published by this association, seemed to have deteriorated following a feud regarding a major painting he rejected in 1997, the daily “Le Figaro” reported on July 20th 2002.
Sued before a Paris court by collector Moshe Shaltiel-Gracian, whose Modigliani's portrait of a dark-haired woman was not considered by Restellini as a work by this famous Italian artist, the Wildenstein Institute felt necessary to ask for a warranty from the art historian in order to keep aloof from the legal dispute.
In June 1997, Restellini called Phillips, which was offering the painting for sale to inform the auction house that he did not consider it as a genuine work by Modigliani. He then sent a fax written on a sheet of paper with the Wildenstein Institute letter-head in which he reaffirmed that the painting was not by Modigliani's hand meaning he would not include it in his catalogue raisonné.
The Modigliani portrait had however an excellent pedigree. Listed in Christian Parisot's catalogue raisonné, it had been successively in the possession of the Leicester Gallery in London and the Pierre Matisse Gallery in New York before it was acquired in 1964 by the Cincinnati Museum, which in turn sold it in 1991 to Moshe Shaltiel-Gracian.
The painting was therefore withdrawn by Phillips and Moshe Shaltiel-Gracian, baffled by Restellini's opinion, launched a legal action before a New York court against the Wildenstein Institute after the art historian had informed his lawyers that no one could ask him to justify his decision, which he had taken independently.
(More next page)
The New York court however stated that it was not in a position to deliver a decision and Moshe Shaltiel-Gracian then chose to seize a Paris court after accusing the Wildenstein Institute of having blocked sale of a Modigliani painting he possessed.
Now, in order to cover itself, the Wildenstein Institute has turned against the art historian to obtain a warranty from him. It has notably stated that it could not be held responsible for Restellini's opinions and that it only put at his disposal its offices, its 400,000 volume library and two assistants as well as the right to use its address and name in his correspondence.
In June 2 000, Daniel Wildenstein had told “Le Figaro” in an interview that he trusted much Restellini as he regarded him as the best specialist regarding Modigliani's work. Still, after his death he was succeeded by his two sons who seem to have adopted another stand vis-à-vis the art historian.
One should note that in the February 1965 issue of the “Gazette des Beaux-Arts”, a magazine owned by Wildenstein, the portrait of a dark-haired young woman by Modigliani, which had been acquired the previous year by the Cincinnati Museum, was described as one of the artist's masterpieces.
All the more, the present dispute follows a series of legal actions already carried out by some angry collectors who challenged Restellini's refusal to include the works they possessed in his Modigliani catalogue raisonné whereas they had been listed as genuine in other catalogues published by his predecessors.
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