Ottawa Citizen

MORE ART INTRIGUE

Chagall family not happy

- PETER HUM

The family of the late RussianFre­nch artist Marc Chagall has written the National Gallery of Canada to say that it “deeply regrets” the gallery’s move to sell the Chagall painting La Tour Eiffel next month at auction in New York.

In the latest twist to what has become a bizarre bit of intrigue in the worlds of Canadian art and politics, the Marc Chagall Committee in Paris sent a letter Tuesday to gallery director and CEO Marc Mayer. Obtained by this newspaper, the committee’s letter says that Canadians would be deprived of part of their cultural heritage if the sale, slated for May 15, went ahead.

“We deeply regret your decision. ... We hope that you will consider other solutions for your museum before implementi­ng this pressing decision, which cannot be undone and is fraught with consequenc­es,” states the letter from Meret Meyer, representi­ng the Chagall committee, which controls the artist’s estate and has a mandate to uphold his reputation.

The gallery bought the painting in 1956, but recently decided to sell it at auction, for as much as US$9 million.

The proceeds had been meant to finance the purchase of a prized painting by French artist Jacques-Louis David. But on Monday, Quebec’s minister of culture announced that David’s painting of Saint Jerome would be classified a provincial heritage document, effectivel­y blocking the National Gallery’s efforts to acquire it.

“It is my duty as minister to protect this work that is part of our history,” said Marie Montpetit, relying upon Quebec’s Cultural Heritage Act this week. “It is with pride that I announce today that Jacques-Louis David’s Saint ‘ will remain in Quebec.”

The 1799 painting of Saint Jerome is owned by the Notre-Dame-de-Québec Parish Corp. in Quebec City, which has wanted to sell it for as much as $6.3 million to raise funds for building upkeep, according to media reports. The painting is one of just two works by David held in Canada.

At first, the National Gallery did not disclose that it was the David painting that it was seeking to buy after selling La Tour Eiffel. Speaking to reporters earlier this month, Mayer would only say that La Tour Eiffel was being sold to finance the acquisitio­n of a “national treasure” that otherwise might be bought by a foreign buyer.

However, Quebec newspapers reported that the David painting was likely in the National Gallery ’s sights. Moreover, the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts and Musée de la civilisati­on in Quebec City publicly expressed their interest in jointly acquiring the David painting — and in keeping it in Quebec.

In 1922, the David painting was donated to the parish corporatio­n by two sisters, Geneviève and Henriette Cramail, who were descendant­s of the French artist Gustave Mailand, who had previously owned the work. The sisters settled in Quebec City in the early 1900s, and after the Cathedral-Basilica of Notre-Dame de Québec was gutted by fire in 1922, they offered the David painting to the parish.

Late Monday afternoon, the National Gallery released a letter saying it was not in “a bidding struggle” to buy the David and it did not intend to “pre-empt efforts by museums in Quebec to purchase the work.

“We were led to believe that, although more than a year had elapsed since the painting was offered for sale, a Quebec institutio­nal buyer seemed unlikely,” said the letter from Mayer and Françoise Lyon, chair of the museum’s board of trustees.

“It was at this time that we also learned that Saint Jerome was being offered to foreign institutio­ns. We made it clear to the owner that we would make every effort to keep the picture in Canada and they agreed to grant us more time to raise the funds. When it comes to the sensitive matter of art acquisitio­ns, discretion is a necessary standard practice. Our actions were never intended to give ourselves an advantage over Quebec museums, but rather to protect a major work with significan­ce for Canada from leaving the country.”

The letter suggested if the National Gallery were to buy the David “it need not be on exclusive permanent display at the National Gallery of Canada. We would welcome developing a long-term loan agreement with museums in Quebec. Indeed, we have a long history of such arrangemen­ts.”

However, last week Mayer said the National Gallery was not interested in working with the Quebec museums on a joint acquisitio­n and the David painting was “not a child of a divorced couple that shuttles back and forth.”

Monday’s letter added the gallery’s board would proceed nonetheles­s with the sale of the Chagall painting May 15 in New York.

“The proceeds from the sale of Marc Chagall’s The Eiffel Tower will be used for three important purposes: supporting the possible acquisitio­n of David’s Saint Jerome, establishi­ng a financial safety net to acquire works at risk of leaving the country, and strengthen­ing the gallery ’s ability to acquire major works of art, either alone or in partnershi­p with the National Gallery of Canada Foundation,” Mayer and Lyon wrote.

The Chagall committee’s letter said National Gallery ’s acquisitio­n of La Tour Eiffel, which was painted in 1929, resonates with the spirit of post- Second World War peace. An iconic exhibition of Chagall’s works last year at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts has surely enlarged the appreciati­on of the artist’s work in Canada, that letter added.

The Chagall painting’s departure from the gallery’s collection has also prompted two online petitions in protest. Almost 900 people have signed the petitions, which call for La Tour Eiffel to remain in Ottawa.

Our actions were never intended to give ourselves an advantage over Quebec museums, but rather to protect a major work with significan­ce for Canada from leaving the country.

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 ?? GALLERY OF CANADA NATIONAL ?? Two online petitions are protesting the sale of La Tour Eiffel.
GALLERY OF CANADA NATIONAL Two online petitions are protesting the sale of La Tour Eiffel.
 ?? MUSEE DE LA CIVILISATI­ON ?? Jacques-Louis David’s Saint Jerome was supposed to be purchased with proceeds of the Chagall sale.
MUSEE DE LA CIVILISATI­ON Jacques-Louis David’s Saint Jerome was supposed to be purchased with proceeds of the Chagall sale.

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