Josef Mühlmann (art historian)

Anton Faistauer : Josef Mühlmann (1930)

Josef Mathäus Mühlmann (born March 12, 1886 in Uttendorf ; † June 1, 1972 in Salzburg ) was an Austrian art historian , restorer and curator . During the Second World War he and his stepbrother Kajetan Mühlmann were involved in art theft in Poland, France, Belgium and the Netherlands.

Childhood and youth

His father of the same name, Josef, was a “Unterkrämer” (small trader) in Uttendorf, but died of pneumonia at the age of 28 (* February 27, 1861, † June 1, 1889) . His mother Juliana (born Nussbaumer, born February 4, 1859) was widowed after six years of marriage, but on July 10, 1893 she married a cousin of her husband, the farmer's son Cajetan Mühlmann. From this marriage, Joseph's stepbrother, Kajetan Mühlmann, emerged. In 1892 Josef was registered in the "Mönchsberg Edmundsburg boys' education institution". In 1899 he entered what was then the kk Staatsgymnasium, today's Academic Gymnasium , and passed the Matura examination there in 1908 at the age of 22.

Afterwards he went to Vienna , where a. a. to study art history with Max Dvořák . He finished his studies with a dissertation on "The Art of Albert Maulbertsch". During his time in Vienna he was known to Anton Faistauer and Sergius Pauser , both of whom portrayed him.

Professional activities

After completing his studies, he received an internship at the Central Commission for Monument Preservation in Vienna, as well as a grant to write a monograph on Albert Maulbertsch. On January 8, 1919, he joined the Salzburg artists' association “ Der Wassermann ”. He wrote the foreword for the exhibition catalog, characterizing Salzburg as “mentally relatively retarded”. In the inter-war period he worked as an art historian, restorer for the Residenzgalerie and as a writer and journalist. From the 1930s on, he and his brother Kajetan came into contact with the Zinkenbach painters' colony , which existed until 1938. From 1924 he also had contact with Governor Franz Rehrl , who was very committed to the Salzburg Festival , but also to art and culture in general. This friendly relationship also survived the war.

Josef Mühlmann in the Nazi era

After the annexation of Austria , Mühlmann turned to the then regional president Albert Ritter with the suggestion of organizing an exhibition of Salzburg works of art ( "Salzburg's visual arts. Masterpieces from prehistory to the 19th century, August 1938" ). This was shown in the auditorium of the university and then in Vienna. Both he and his stepbrother soon served the Nazi regime . You were involved in Adolf Hitler et al. a. the painting “Der Sonntagsspaziergang” by Carl Spitzweg from the holdings of the Carolino Augusteum Museum or Hermann Göring 's “Jagdbild” by C. List from the Kunstkammer of St. Peter Abbey . After his stepbrother Kajetan Mühlmann, who was already SS-Oberführer in 1939, was appointed Special Representative of the Governor General for “Securing Art and Cultural Assets in the General Government”, Josef was also appointed head of the “Northern Group of the Mühlmann Office” in Warsaw. The two brothers have stolen art on a large scale in Poland, France, Belgium and the Netherlands. In 1940 Josef was dismissed and the rank of SS-Hauptsturmführer was stripped from him because he passed on private gifts of the stolen works of art from his girlfriend. In addition to the headquarters in The Hague , the Mühlmann office opened an office in Brussels and Paris . Josef managed the Paris office and organized sales exhibitions there and helped buyers from Germany to circumvent the export regulations for French art objects, including Friedrich Welz . He also worked as a buyer of art in the vicinity of Hermann Göring in Warsaw and Paris.

After the war, both Mühlmann brothers were arrested by the US Army and interned at Camp Marcus W. Orr . His brother Kajetan fled the camp; Investigations against Josef Mühlmann were brought to the People's Court in Linz, but these were discontinued in 1952. He was obviously never a member of the NSDAP , but SS member with the number 382.523 and with a report of August 1, 1940, SS-Hauptsturmführer.

Further life

After the war he took part in the salvage work at the Carolino Augusteum Museum, which was badly damaged by bombs in 1944 and the planned relocation operations during the war had not yet been completed. In 1947 he appeared here as an assistant for salvage and excavation work. This enabled him to work again as a restorer for the museum. In October 1947, the museum director Rigobert Funke-Elbstadt applied to transfer him to the group of “professionals”. However, he was dismissed in 1948 because he spent more of his time doing private work as a restorer. In 1952 he became a curator for the Residenzgalerie, which was about to reopen and for which he had already served as a restorer. A Viennese exhibition on Anton Faistauer was brought to Salzburg by him and enlarged with further paintings. In 1954 he curated the exhibition “Hans Makart and his time. Exhibition in the rooms of the Residenzgalerie from July 3 to September 30, 1954 ”. In 1955 he had to stop his work due to health problems, but was still connected to the Residenzgalerie through smaller orders and restorations. In 1963 he lived with his partner, the painter and restorer Annemarie Fiebich-Ripke , as a restorer in Salzburg.

In 1965 a "gift of grace" was applied for for his artistic work and approved by the office of the Salzburg provincial government. This "honorary pension" was increased in 1969 and continuously in the following years. Like his brother, who died in 1958, he was buried in the Maxglan cemetery.

Works

• Josef Mühlmann: The Salzburg Cathedral. Two parts. In: Artes Austriae. Studies on the history of art in Austria. Volume 3, Vienna 1925.
• Josef Mühlmann: Cathedral and residence in Salzburg. In: Erwin Stein (Hrsg.): A collection of representations of the German-Austrian cities and their work in economy, finance, hygiene, social policy and technology. Volume VIII: Salzburg. Berlin-Friedenau 1932, pp. 48–53.
• Josef Mühlmann: Old execution sites in the state of Salzburg. In: Salzburger Volksblatt. April 17, 1937, p. 5.
• Josef Mühlmann: How the Salzburg people built a gallows and the Bavarians hacked it down. In: Salzburger Volksblatt. July 25, 1937, p. 5.
• Josef Mühlmann: Salzburg's fine arts. Masterpieces from prehistory to XIX centuries Century Salzburg August 1938.
• Josef Mühlmann: Hans Makart and his time. Exhibition in the rooms of the Residenzgalerie from July 3 to September 30, 1954. Salzburg 1954.

literature

• Gerda Dohle: Josef Mühlmann (1866–1972). In Salzburg Museum (ed.): Anschluss, Krieg & Trümmer. Salzburg and its museum under National Socialism. Aumayer Verlag, Salzburg 2018, ISBN 978-3-900088-89-7 , pp. 203-215.
• Peter F. Kammel: Dr. Josef Mühlmann (1866–1972). First academically educated art historian in the country. In: Peter F. Kammel, Franz Lauterbacher, Guido Müller (eds.): Maxglan. One hundred years of parish 1907–2007. Salzburg's second largest city cemetery. Salzburg 2007, p. 279.

Web links

• Jean Vlug: Vlug Report, December 25, 1945. Parts 1 (p. 5), 2 (p. 58, 66f). (226 typewriter pages; here Joseph (!) Mühlmann)
• Günther Haase: Art theft and art protection. Volume I: A Documentation. Books on Demand, 2008, ISBN 978-3-8334-8975-4 , pp. 189 ff Die Dienststelle Mühlmann. (books.google.at)
• Salzburg State Collections: Provenance Research and Restitution. The trips to Paris.
• Josef Mühlmann in the Salzburgwiki sn.at

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Vlug Report, p. 67.
2. ^ Fritz Koller, inventory book of the Landesgalerie Salzburg 1942–1944. Salzburg 2000, pp. 14-16. ( Memento from March 20, 2008 in the Internet Archive )