Spring 2018 Course

Description

Instructor: David Walden
Class Size:  Up to 50 participants

In the 1930s, the Nazi Government of Germany began to systematically confiscate works of art from the collections of private citizens and art galleries. As the Second World War drew to a close, large caches of looted art were discovered by both Allied forces and the army of the Soviet Union. While the Allied armies sought to return the art to its rightful owners, the Soviet armies secreted it away and kept it as war reparations. This lecture examines the looting of art during the Nazi regime, the different approaches to its return after the war, and the continuing discoveries of looted art previously thought lost. It will also highlight successful cases of post-war recovery and return, as well as very public refusals by governments to do so.

David Walden holds a B.A. (Honours) in History and Political Science and an M.A. in Canadian Studies, both from Carleton University. He has over 30 years’ experience working with UNESCO, culminating in his appointment as Secretary-General of the Canadian Commission for UNESCO in 1999. He was a member of the Executive Management Committee of the Canada Council for the Arts from 1999 until his retirement in 2013. David currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Perley Health Veterans’ Health Centre.