David David-Weill

David David-Weill (1871–1952) was a French-American banker, chairman of Lazard Frères in Paris, who built an important collection of art. His collection was plundered by the Nazis during the Second World War and over 2000 items seized. He was a major donor to French and American museums and galleries and a benefactor to universities.

David David-Weill
Édouard Vuillard, David David-Weill, 1925. Oil on canvas. Private Collection.
Born1871
Died1952
NationalityAmerican
OccupationBanker
Known forArt collector
Jean Siméon Chardin, Soap Bubbles. Oil on canvas. Ex David David-Weill Collection. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.[1]
Claude Monet, Dans la Prairie. Ex David David-Weill Collection.[2][3]

Early life and family

David-Weill was born in San Francisco on 30 August 1871.[4] He was the son of Julie (née Cahn) and Alexandre Weill (1834–1906). His father was a cousin to the three French Jewish brothers who founded Lazard Frères & Co. His parents had left France in 1870 because of the Franco-Prussian War, and settled in California, where Raphaël Weill, a brother of Alexandre Weill, lived.[5] They returned to France about 1883. David-Weill continued his education there at the Lycée Condorcet and the École Libre des Sciences Politiques. He married Flora Raphaël in 1897 and they had seven children, including Pierre David-Weill and Jean David-Weill.

Banking career

Following his education, David-Weill performed his military service and began to work at Lazard Frères, where he rose to become chairman. He became a regent of the Banque de France in 1935.

Collecting

David-Weill began to collect from an early age. His acquisitions included paintings, drawings, miniatures, sculptures, furniture, silverware, and other items. He became president of the Réunion des Musées Nationaux and vice president of the Société des amis du Louvre.[4]

In 1931, David-Weill transferred part of his collection to a British holding company called Anglo-Continental Art, Inc, which was owned by a Canadian corporation that he controlled.[6]

In late 1940, David-Weill sent twenty-six cases of paintings and antiquities to Lisbon for shipment on the SS Excalibur to New York, where they were to be sold by the Wildensteins, as property of Anglo-Continental Art, Inc. However U.S. Treasury officials, concerned about their French origins in wartime, "descended on the elegant premises of Wildenstein, New York". The assets of Anglo-Continental were frozen by US officials and proceeds placed in a blocked account.[6]

In France, David-Weill's collection was looted by the Nazis during the Second World War and, according to German records, 2687 items seized.[7][8]

In later life he donated more than 2000 items to museums and galleries, including the Guimet Museum, the Louvre, and universities in New York, Hamburg, Leiden, Honolulu, and Stockholm. He donated to the libraries of the Musée de l'Homme and the Institut national d'histoire de l'art, to which he gave the manuscript and journal of Eugène Delacroix. He also gave his Chinese-bronze collection to the Musée Guimet and his cloisonné objects to the Musée des Arts Décoratifs (MAD).[4]

Death

David-Weill died in Neuilly-sur-Seine, Paris, on 7 July 1952.[4] Parts of his collection were sold in a series of auctions in 1970.

Honors
Avenue David-Weill, Paris.

See also

References
  1. Soap Bubbles. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Retrieved 16 February 2015.
  2. Sale 7701, Lot. 19. Christie's. Retrieved 16 February 2015.
  3. "Monet oil tests art market." Mark Brown, The Guardian, 5 February 2009. Retrieved 16 February 2015.
  4. David David-Weill. Dumbarton Oaks. Retrieved 10 February 2015.
  5. "Raphael Weill, San Francisco's White House. Ship Passenger Arrivals to San Francisco. 1800s. The Maritime Heritage Project. Captains, Ships, Merchants, Merchandise, Immigration, World Migrantion".
  6. H., Nicholas, Lynn (2009). The rape of Europa : the fate of Europe's treasures in the Third Reich and the Second World War. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-307-73972-8. OCLC 649080564.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  7. Harclerode, Peter, & Brendan Pittaway. (1999) The Lost Masters: The Looting of Europe's Treasurehouses. London: Victor Gollancz, p. 44. ISBN 0575052546
  8. "A Rare Buddha's Head Statue Once Looted by the Nazis Goes up for Auction in New York | Auctions News | THE VALUE | Art News". TheValue.com. Retrieved 2022-09-10. The Sui dynasty Buddha's head was one of the items transferred to Jeu de Paume on 28 June 1943, ERR inventory no. DW 2492. It was repatriated to France on 4 March 1946 and subsequently restituted to David David-Weill. It went up for auction at Sotheby's London in 1972 after his death. The Buddha's head was acquired by Eskenazi, the Godfather of Chinese Antiques, from the sale. It was then kept in the James and Marilynn Alsdorf Collection.

Further reading
  • Henriot, Gabriel. (1926) Collection David-Weill. Paris: Presses de Braun. (3 vols.)
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