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| Art for East Germany’s Secret Police Is for Sale in Miami | Art for East Germany’s Secret Police Is for Sale in Miami |
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| An art historian in Germany has unearthed a three-ton, 65-foot-wide stained glass mural that was created in the early 1980s for the headquarters of the East German secret police, or Stasi, and had been forgotten in a shipping container for 24 years. It will go on sale at a temporary exhibition space in Miami to coincide with the Art Basel Miami Beach contemporary art fair next week, with a price tag of $21.4 million, which some historians said was out of line with its value. | |
| The free-standing stained-glass screen was commissioned in 1979 by Erich Mielke, the head of the Ministry of State Security. It sat in a general purpose room in the agency’s compound, a high-security group of buildings in the former East Berlin that is now the Stasi Museum. The work was recently found by Thilo Holzmann, an art historian and dealer whose uncle had bought it in 1990 and put in storage. | The free-standing stained-glass screen was commissioned in 1979 by Erich Mielke, the head of the Ministry of State Security. It sat in a general purpose room in the agency’s compound, a high-security group of buildings in the former East Berlin that is now the Stasi Museum. The work was recently found by Thilo Holzmann, an art historian and dealer whose uncle had bought it in 1990 and put in storage. |
| William Melching, an expert in German Cold War history at the University of Amsterdam, said “it was a kind of custom to make stained glass memorial things in East Germany,” and he questioned the asking price for the work. | William Melching, an expert in German Cold War history at the University of Amsterdam, said “it was a kind of custom to make stained glass memorial things in East Germany,” and he questioned the asking price for the work. |
| “What struck me as odd is that it was in the Stasi headquarters and that there is no specific reference to the secret work, intelligence activities or the conspiracies which they indulged in,” he said. “That would make it more valuable.” | “What struck me as odd is that it was in the Stasi headquarters and that there is no specific reference to the secret work, intelligence activities or the conspiracies which they indulged in,” he said. “That would make it more valuable.” |
| Mielke, who died in 2000, commissioned the artist Richard Otfried Wilhelm, who was then the chief master of glass for public works in the German Democratic Republic, and one of the few East German artisans trained in Gothic stained glass techniques dating back to the 14th century. | Mielke, who died in 2000, commissioned the artist Richard Otfried Wilhelm, who was then the chief master of glass for public works in the German Democratic Republic, and one of the few East German artisans trained in Gothic stained glass techniques dating back to the 14th century. |
| Mr. Wilhelm, who is now 84 and living in Berlin, said in an email interview that his initial meeting was with Heinz Gläske, a government architect, who told him only that it would be placed in a new Stasi building complex. | Mr. Wilhelm, who is now 84 and living in Berlin, said in an email interview that his initial meeting was with Heinz Gläske, a government architect, who told him only that it would be placed in a new Stasi building complex. |
| “So it was crucial that it be both artistically outstanding and politically powerful,” Mr. Wilhelm said. Later, he met with Mr. Mielke, and the artist and a team of about 15 glaziers worked on the piece for about two years, completing it in 1983. | “So it was crucial that it be both artistically outstanding and politically powerful,” Mr. Wilhelm said. Later, he met with Mr. Mielke, and the artist and a team of about 15 glaziers worked on the piece for about two years, completing it in 1983. |
| Once the piece was finished, Mr. Wilhelm said, he was not allowed to photograph it when it was installed in a ceremonial conference room in the Stasi headquarters, which was open only to top Stasi agents, members of the KGB and other Iron Curtain intelligence agencies. | Once the piece was finished, Mr. Wilhelm said, he was not allowed to photograph it when it was installed in a ceremonial conference room in the Stasi headquarters, which was open only to top Stasi agents, members of the KGB and other Iron Curtain intelligence agencies. |
| The 10-foot-high glass wall is pigmented with precious metals — including 55 pounds of gold — and has a hammer and sickle symbol, a slogan of the international communist movement and references to the French Revolution. | The 10-foot-high glass wall is pigmented with precious metals — including 55 pounds of gold — and has a hammer and sickle symbol, a slogan of the international communist movement and references to the French Revolution. |
| Mr. Wilhelm titled the work “Revolution: Frieden unserem Erdenrund” (Revolution: Peace to the Whole World), an incongruous title for a symbol of a repressive regime. In the center is an image of Lenin, and there are two doves, symbolizing peace — both common iconographical elements in East German monuments, Mr. Melching said. | Mr. Wilhelm titled the work “Revolution: Frieden unserem Erdenrund” (Revolution: Peace to the Whole World), an incongruous title for a symbol of a repressive regime. In the center is an image of Lenin, and there are two doves, symbolizing peace — both common iconographical elements in East German monuments, Mr. Melching said. |
| “Their rhetoric was always revolving around how they had to arm themselves in order to preserve the peace,” he said. “They were not pacifists.” | “Their rhetoric was always revolving around how they had to arm themselves in order to preserve the peace,” he said. “They were not pacifists.” |
| After the Berlin Wall fell, the Stasi headquarters were closed in 1990, and the agency’s assets were sold through the Deutsche Reichsbahn, the state railroad company. Eberhard Dümmen, the owner of an art logistics company and Mr. Holzmann’s uncle, learned about the work from one of his employees who had worked for the Reichsbahn. He bought it for an unknown sum — records of the sale have been destroyed, and Mr. Holzmann said Mr. Dümmen did does not recall what he paid — loaded it into a shipping container, and placed it in a storage lot in Berlin. | After the Berlin Wall fell, the Stasi headquarters were closed in 1990, and the agency’s assets were sold through the Deutsche Reichsbahn, the state railroad company. Eberhard Dümmen, the owner of an art logistics company and Mr. Holzmann’s uncle, learned about the work from one of his employees who had worked for the Reichsbahn. He bought it for an unknown sum — records of the sale have been destroyed, and Mr. Holzmann said Mr. Dümmen did does not recall what he paid — loaded it into a shipping container, and placed it in a storage lot in Berlin. |
| Mr. Holzmann remembers his uncle telling him about the piece around that time. “In those days, I was not at all interested in Communist stuff,” Mr. Holzmann, who later became an art historian specializing in Impressionist art and an art dealer for his uncle, said in a phone interview from Miami, where he was installing the piece before the opening of the fair. | Mr. Holzmann remembers his uncle telling him about the piece around that time. “In those days, I was not at all interested in Communist stuff,” Mr. Holzmann, who later became an art historian specializing in Impressionist art and an art dealer for his uncle, said in a phone interview from Miami, where he was installing the piece before the opening of the fair. |
| “I knew about it all these years, but for all these years, I, like everyone else, was forgetting what was forgotten,” he said. | “I knew about it all these years, but for all these years, I, like everyone else, was forgetting what was forgotten,” he said. |
| Mr. Holzmann asked about the fate of the glass work several years ago. When Mr. Dümmen said it was still probably where he left it, Mr. Holzmann tracked it down in the Berlin neighborhood of Weissensee. | Mr. Holzmann asked about the fate of the glass work several years ago. When Mr. Dümmen said it was still probably where he left it, Mr. Holzmann tracked it down in the Berlin neighborhood of Weissensee. |
| He called Susanna Lilienthal, a conservator who played a central role in the restoration of the sixth century B.C. Ishtar Gate at the Pergamon Museum in Berlin. She saw the work in August 2015. “When the container opened, history came out,” she said in a telephone interview. | He called Susanna Lilienthal, a conservator who played a central role in the restoration of the sixth century B.C. Ishtar Gate at the Pergamon Museum in Berlin. She saw the work in August 2015. “When the container opened, history came out,” she said in a telephone interview. |
| It was in nearly perfect condition, she said, save a few cracks in the glass. Together, Mr. Holzmann and Ms. Lilienthal researched the history of the artwork and tracked down Mr. Wilhelm, who shared his story with them in a videotaped interview. | It was in nearly perfect condition, she said, save a few cracks in the glass. Together, Mr. Holzmann and Ms. Lilienthal researched the history of the artwork and tracked down Mr. Wilhelm, who shared his story with them in a videotaped interview. |
| Mr. Holzmann, who is representing his uncle in the sale, said the craftsmanship and the extraordinary story are what make the piece worth $21.4 million. He said he hoped to sell it to a museum or a private individual who will donate it to a public institution. | Mr. Holzmann, who is representing his uncle in the sale, said the craftsmanship and the extraordinary story are what make the piece worth $21.4 million. He said he hoped to sell it to a museum or a private individual who will donate it to a public institution. |
| But Mr. Melching, of the University of Amsterdam said he would be surprised if it brought anywhere near that price. “Maybe a couple of hundred thousand euros, but millions is a bit ridiculous,” he said. | But Mr. Melching, of the University of Amsterdam said he would be surprised if it brought anywhere near that price. “Maybe a couple of hundred thousand euros, but millions is a bit ridiculous,” he said. |
| Sjeng Scheijen, an associate researcher at Leiden University who curated an exhibition about Stalin-era propaganda art at the Drents Museum in Assen, the Netherlands, agreed. “The quality of this piece is certainly not exceptional from an artistic point of view,” he said. “If they will sell it for this price, you will see a storm of the same kind of art coming on the market, because many of these kinds of stained glass windows are very often in buildings from the ’70s and ’80s that aren’t used any more.” | Sjeng Scheijen, an associate researcher at Leiden University who curated an exhibition about Stalin-era propaganda art at the Drents Museum in Assen, the Netherlands, agreed. “The quality of this piece is certainly not exceptional from an artistic point of view,” he said. “If they will sell it for this price, you will see a storm of the same kind of art coming on the market, because many of these kinds of stained glass windows are very often in buildings from the ’70s and ’80s that aren’t used any more.” |
| Whatever the piece’s monetary value, the history associated with it has a complex message for viewers who lived through the era. “I grew up in the G.D.R. and I still have a hard time with it,” Ms. Lilienthal said. “But we need to save the dark parts of our history, too. | Whatever the piece’s monetary value, the history associated with it has a complex message for viewers who lived through the era. “I grew up in the G.D.R. and I still have a hard time with it,” Ms. Lilienthal said. “But we need to save the dark parts of our history, too. |
| “It’s very colorful and beautiful, but what’s most important is that it shows that the artists in the G.D.R. were not free,” she said. “They did what the dictators wanted.” | “It’s very colorful and beautiful, but what’s most important is that it shows that the artists in the G.D.R. were not free,” she said. “They did what the dictators wanted.” |