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Het Verlies Van De Hobbema Van Steengracht Uit Het Nederlands Openbaar Kunstbezit En De Vervreemdingsregeling Van De Nieuwe Erfgoedwet

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Het Verlies Van De Hobbema Van Steengracht Uit Het Nederlands Openbaar Kunstbezit En De Vervreemdingsregeling Van De Nieuwe Erfgoedwet Het verlies van de Hobbema van Steengracht uit het Nederlands openbaar kunstbezit en de vervreemdingsregeling van de nieuwe Erfgoedwet Universiteit Utrecht - Bachelor scriptie 2016/2017 Student - Lisanne Bedaux (3977730) Begeleider - Prof. Dr. Sven Dupré Afbeelding 1 Meindert Hobbema (1638-1709) Landschap met twee watermolens (Hobbema van Steengracht) ca. 1670. Olieverf op doek, 90,1 x 128,3 cm. Ottawa, National Gallery of Canada Inhoudsopgave Samenvatting………………………………………………………………………………………………………..p. 3 Inleiding…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….....p. 4 Hoofdstuk 1 – De aankoop en schenking van de Hobbema van Steengracht…………..…..p. 8 Aankopen door de Vereniging Rembrandt uit de collectie Steengracht…………………………………...p. 8 De schenking van de Hobbema van Steengracht aan Canada…………………………………………………..p. 9 Hoofdstuk 2- Hobbema, canonvorming en de kunsthistorische waardering voor de Hobbema van Steengracht binnen zijn oeuvre………………………………………………………..p. 12 Canonvorming……………………………………………………………………………………………….p. 12 Waardering binnen het oeuvre…………………………………………………………………………...p. 13 Hoofdstuk 3 – Een nieuwe Erfgoedwet…………………………………………………………………p. 15 Definitie van cultureel erfgoed……………………………………………………………………………p. 15 Belangrijkste uitgangspunten en hoofdpunten van het wetsvoorstel……………………………..p. 15 De vervreemdingsregeling toen en nu…………………………………………………………………..p. 16 Hoofdstuk 4 – Kunsthistorische argumenten en de juridische werkelijkheid………….p. 20 Wettelijke grondslag………………………………………………………………………………………..p. 20 Advies bij vervreemding…………………………………………………………………………………...p. 20 Reikwijdte van het advies………………………………………………………………………………….p. 21 Conclusie……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..p. 23 Literatuurlijst……………………………………………………………………………………………………..p. 26 2 Samenvatting In 1950 schonk de Nederlandse staat het Landschap met twee watermolens van Meindert Hobbema (1638-1709) aan de regering van Canada als dank voor de rol die de Canadese soldaten hadden gespeeld bij de bevrijding van Nederland tijdens de Tweede Wereldoorlog. Dit schilderij, dat zich op dat moment in de collectie van het Mauritshuis bevond, werd gekozen boven drie andere uit het Rijksmuseum. De keuze viel juist op dit schilderij, omdat het Hollandse landschap de Canadese militairen deed denken aan de strijd die zij op Nederlandse bodem hadden uitgevochten. In deze scriptie wordt getoetst of de nieuwe Erfgoedwet, zoals in werking getreden in juli 2016, zou hebben kunnen voorkomen dat dit schilderij uit Nederlands openbaar kunstbezit kon worden ontvreemd. Aan de hand van de waarderingsgeschiedenis van Meindert Hobbema worden de waarborgen, die door de vervreemdingsregeling van de nieuwe Erfgoedwet worden geboden, getoetst. Uit het onderzoek is gebleken dat ook indien de huidige Erfgoedwet in 1950 van kracht zou zijn geweest Hobbema’s schilderij hoe dan ook voor het Nederlands erfgoed verloren zou zijn gegaan. 3 Inleiding ‘Een Oranje-traditie’ noemde het NRC ‘het voortvarend afstoten van kunst, zonder veel rekening te houden met kunsthistorische gevoeligheden’.1 Dit naar aanleiding van de verkoop van de Boschbrand geschilderd door de Javaan Raden Saleh (1811-1880), destijds een cadeau aan koning Willem III. Het enorme doek, met daarop twee indrukwekkende tijgers in gevecht met twee bizons (zie afbeelding 2), lag totaal verwaarloosd in een opslagplaats in Rijswijk waar het in 2007 door kunsthistorica Marie-Odette Scalliet werd herontdekt.2 Het schilderij was dermate slecht geconserveerd dat je zou kunnen spreken van een verwoesting. Toch werd het zwaar beschadigde doek gerestaureerd en vervolgens, met afgegeven uitvoervergunning, eind 2013 verscheept naar de National Gallery in Singapore. Dat museum betaalde naar men zegt tussen de 3 en 5 miljoen dollar voor het werk.3 De verkoop zorgde voor enorme ophef in de media, want het zou hier gaan om ‘een spectaculair topstuk uit het Nederlandse koloniale culturele erfgoed.’ 4 De ontstaansgeschiedenis van het schilderij, binnen de koloniale negentiende-eeuwse geschiedenis, maakt dat het werk een belangrijke kunsthistorische waarde vertegenwoordigt. Daarnaast was er discussie over de vraag of het schilderij wel als privé bezit van het Koninklijk huis kon worden aangemerkt of, dat er toch sprake was van openbaar kunstbezit. Afbeelding 2 Raden Saleh (1811-1880) Boschbrand 1849, olieverf op doek, 300 x 396 cm. Singapore, National Gallery Wie denkt dat de verkoop van cultureel erfgoed aan het buitenland slechts een aangelegenheid van de Oranjes is heeft het mis. Nederland kent talloze voorbeelden van verkoop van belangrijk openbaar kunstbezit door zowel overheden, zoals de provincies en de gemeentes, alsook door museumdirecteuren zelf. Een voorbeeld hiervan is de voorgenomen verkoop van de Afrika collectie van het Wereldmuseum in Rotterdam 1 A. Ribbens, ‘Geen Oranje wilde twaalf vierkante meter tijgers’, NRC 7 oktober 2016, geraadpleegd op 3 januari 2017 via < https://ww.nrc.nl/nieuws/2016/10/07/geen-oranje-wilde-twaalf-vierkante-meter-tijgers-4690427-a1525537 >. 2 A. Ribbens 2016 (zie noot 1). 3 A. Ribbens 2016 (zie noot 1). 4 L. van Leeuwen, ‘‘Boschbrand’ is niet gewoon erfgoed, het is koloniaal erfgoed’, NRC 12 oktober 2016, geraadpleegd op 3 januari 2017 via < https://www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2016/10/12/boschbrand-is-niet-gewoon-erfgoed-het-is-koloniaal-erfgoed-4791587- a1526204>. 4 door directeur Stanley Bremer. De geschatte opbrengst van 60 miljoen euro zou worden gebruikt om het museum minder afhankelijk te maken van gemeentelijke subsidies.5 Een ander voorbeeld is de verkoop van Compositie met twee lijnen van Piet Mondriaan (1872-1944) door de Gemeente Hilversum ter bekostiging van de restauratie van het vervallen theater Gooiland.6 Beide zijn voorbeelden van de wijze waarop er geregeld met ons Nederlands cultureel erfgoed wordt omgegaan. Politieke en financiële argumenten wegen in veel van deze gevallen zwaarder dan kunsthistorische. Daarnaast kan ook sprake zijn van onwetendheid of onderwaardering. Dit eerste was bijvoorbeeld het geval toen het Haags Gemeentemuseum in 2005 een schilderij van ene ‘Mackoff’ op de veiling bracht bij Sotheby’s. Het schilderij was getaxeerd op 1000 euro, maar bracht 2 miljoen pond op. Tijdens de veilingdagen bleek het namelijk te gaan om de avantgardistische Russische kunstenaar Ilya Masjkov (1881-1944).7 Hetzelfde museum verkocht in de jaren ’70 van de twintigste eeuw voor een paar honderd gulden een schilderij van Adriaen Coorte (ca. 1659-1707).8 Een verkoop die we nu niet meer goed zouden kunnen begrijpen, gezien de enorme opwaardering van deze schilder. Met ons erfgoed zouden we zorgvuldig moeten omgaan, maar uit voorgaande voorbeelden blijkt dat er soms onvoldoende (juridische) waarborgen zijn om zo’n zorgvuldige omgang met publiek erfgoed altijd te kunnen garanderen. Vanwege de versnipperde sectorale regelgeving is vanuit de politiek besloten om een geïntegreerde Erfgoedwet te maken. Binnen deze wet is een afstotingsregeling opgenomen die verkoop door de verschillende overheden van beschermd cultuurgoed in de toekomst moet voorkomen.9 Daarnaast moet zij een wettelijke basis bieden om ook daadwerkelijk sancties op te kunnen leggen indien regels worden geschonden. In juli 2016 trad de wet in werking.10 Tijdens de behandeling van de nieuwe Erfgoedwet in de Tweede Kamer maakte Alexander Pechtold, fractievoorzitter van D66, terecht het volgende punt: ‘Hoe we naar ons erfgoed kijken, verandert met de tijd. Wat gemaakt werd als gebruiksvoorwerp, is nu een museumstuk. Wat ooit een stuiver opbracht, trekt nu een miljoenenpubliek.’11 Dit kan tot problemen leiden wanneer we erfgoed moeten beoordelen en waarderen, wanneer we het willen vervreemden. Dit gegeven was de aanleiding om in deze scriptie de vervreemdingsregeling van de nieuwe Erfgoedwet en het beoordelingskader dat daarbij hoort nader te bekijken. Het uitgangspunt is een spraakmakende zaak, waarbij de politiek op het hoogste niveau besloot een zeldzaam werk (zie afbeelding 1) van de zeventiende-eeuwse landschapschilder Meindert Hobbema (1638-1709) uit het publiek domein te ontvreemden, door het namens het 5 R. Priem, ‘Wereldmuseum, Rotterdam: voorgenomen verkoop Afrika-collectie, 2011-13’, in T. Barkhuysen, M. Claessens e.a., Zorgvuldige omgang met kunst in het publiek domein. Bouwstenen voor een toekomstbestendige regeling, Houten 2014, p. 35. 6 R. Priem, ‘Gemeente Hilversum/Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, verkoop Mondriaan, 1987’, in T. Barkhuysen, M. Claessens e.a., Zorgvuldige omgang met kunst in het publiek domein. Bouwstenen voor een toekomstbestendige regeling, Houten 2014, p. 29. 7 R. Priem, ‘Gemeentemuseum, Den Haag: verkoop schilderij ‘Mackoff/Masjkov, 2005-06’, in T. Barkhuysen, M. Claessens e.a., Zorgvuldige omgang met kunst in het publiek domein. Bouwstenen voor een toekomstbestendige regeling, Houten 2014, p. 32. 8 E. Spaans, ‘Van de reservebank’, FD Persoonlijk 1 maart 2008, online geraadpleegd op 3 januari 2017 via < https://fd.nl/frontpage/Print/Bijlage/Persoonlijk/585776/van-de-reservebank >. 9 Artikel 4.14-4.21 Erfgoedwet. 10 MvT II 2014/15, 34 109, 3, p.4. 11 Handelingen II 2015/16, 90-21, p. 3. 5 Nederlandse volk als dank voor de bevrijding na de Tweede Wereldoorlog te schenken aan Canada. Een ‘oude’ zaak gebruiken om de Erfgoedwet te evalueren was onvermijdelijk, omdat er nog geen voorbeelden van zaken zijn van na de inwerkingtreding van de nieuwe wet. De waardering voor het werk van Hobbema heeft door de eeuwen heen gefluctueerd. Die waarderingsgeschiedenis maakt dat zijn werk een interessant uitgangspunt biedt om naar de Erfgoedwet te kijken, omdat
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