The protection of cultural heritage property in armed conflicts, 70 years of the 1954 Hague convention
The issue of cultural heritage protection in wartime conflicts is, unfortunately, highly topical.
It‘s estimated that in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, as of September of this year, 438 sites have been damaged (including 142 religious sites, 215 real estates of historical/cultural interest, 32 museums, 32 monuments, 16 libraries and 1 archive - UNESCO data).
Other fragile artistic heritages, such as the Armenian one, are in danger, if not already irreparably destroyed or appropriated.
The International Criminal Court considers a “war crime” to intentionally direct attacks against cultural heritage, but to date few cases have been successfully instructed, such as war in former Yugoslavia, or the Al Mahdi case (2016).
What can be done to protect cultural heritage from the destruction of the war?
We discussed this topic with Elena Franchi, a professor at the University of Trento, and Teresa Beracci, a sociologist and columnist, on Sunday 24th November 2024 at RSI 2, on the program Voci Dipinte, hosted by Cristiana Coletti.
We will discuss this issue again on November 30, during the conference moderated by me to be held at the Cantonal Library in Bellinzona: “The Protection of Cultural Property in Armed Conflict, the 70th Anniversary of the 1954 'Hague Convention,'” in collaboration with Asasi, with the participation of Katja Bigger, Scientific Associate at the Bellinzona Office of Cultural Property, Béatrice Blandin, Curator of the Archaeology Section of the Musée d'art et d'histoire in Geneva, and Aldo Ferrari, Professor of Armenian Language and Literature at Ca' Foscari University in Venice.
You can listen to the Radio broadcast of 24th November 2024 at the following link:
Artist archives and authentications: the Albers case
Artist archives and authentications: the Albers case. June 2024.
Josef Albers - the judgment by the Milan Court of Appeal that had alleged the Foundation's potential conflict of interest has been annulled
Read the article published in IL GIORNALE DELL’ARTE no. 451, June 2024
A contested Rousseau at the Kunstmuseum Basel
Listen to Dario Jucker's contribution in the radio program Alphaville on Network Two of Swiss Radio and Television on 19.01.2024: click here.
The legacy of artists: archives and their management
L’eredità degli artisti: gli archivi e la loro gestione. Novembre 2023.
On Saturday, November 25, 2023, at the State Archives of Canton Ticino and with the collaboration of AsaSI (Association of Art Historians of Italian-speaking Switzerland), the above mentioned meeting was held in which Michael Schmid in charge of the Swiss Art Archives of the Swiss Institute of Art Studies (SIK-ISEA) in Zurich, Prof. Avv. Alessandra Donati, Filipo Tibertelli de Pisis, Carlo Agliati and lawyer Dario Jucker participated. Read the article
Dario Jucker is a guest in the Radio program “Alphaville”, broadcast on Swiss Radio Channel 2 on “The stolen artifacts in museums”.
The matter of locating and repatriating archaeological artifacts and ancient works of art after being illegally stolen in their countries of origin has reached the museums’ collections.
Listen to the podcast
Conflicts of interest? No sir! October 2022
Conflicts of interest? No sir! October 2022
Artists' archives and foundations are essential to verify the authenticity.
But some doubts on their authority have been insinuated in case the same entities are also owners of the artworks.
Dario Jucker writes on this interesting topic.
Read the article that was published on issue 432 of IL GIORNALE DELL’ARTE.
This is how forgeries end (when everything goes in the right direction…)
The Carabinieri's Cultural Heritage Protection Command destroyed on October 11 two fake "Homage to the Square" paintings sold to innocent buyers as authentic works by Josef Albers.
In execution of the judgment issued on 14.12.2017 by the Court of Milan Sez X Criminal and the subsequent orders of the same section dated 21.12.2017 and 15.04.22, in the criminal proceeding RG Trib 4727/17 - 40235/13 RGNR Mod. 21.
The Director of the Josef & Anni Albers Foundation, Nicholas Fox Weber, attended the ceremony.
La tutela dell’eredità di Josef Albers
Protecting Albers’s legacy. May 2022
In occasione del 50esimo anniversario della Josef & Anni Albers Foundation, l’ente ha curato un libro dal titolo “You can go anywhere”. Sono onorato di essere parte del progetto di protezione dell’eredità di Josef Albers e di lavorare in qualità di legale che tutela l’autenticità delle opere dell’artista.
Dario Jucker is a guest in the Radio program “Moby Dick”, broadcast on Swiss Radio Channel 2 on the art system in the age of financialization.
Albers Foundation warns of Josef Albers forgery after a case in Milan
Il Financial Times e Artnet pubblicano un articolo relativo ad una contraffazione di un Omaggio al quadrato di Albers.
The Financial Times and Artnet speak about Josef Albers’ forgeries and a legal case in Milan.
Read the article of the Financial Times / Go to the link of the article of Artnet
It has just been printed the book "The good practices for collectors" curated by Dario Jucker.
I am glad to announce the publication of the second volume of the series "Comparative Art Law" entitled "The good practices for collectors", curated by D. Jucker and edited by Edizioni Scientifiche Italiane.
Collecting artworks is a matter of passion, but – in the contemporary world, given the values at stake, entails some responsibilities and risks.
The good practices for collectors are a set of rules, judicial precedents and soft law instruments, which are gradually imposing in the artworld and that are of essence to build an art collection not only with the instinct, but following some rules that can guarantee a greater certainty in the acquisition.
This book, the second volume of the series “Comparative Art Law”, collects several contributions by art law experts and is aimed not only to specialists, but also to those collectors who wish to gain knowledge or deepen some complex art law topics, such as exportation, title, archiving, tax and circulation, in order to navigate with less uncertainty in the “wide waters” of the art market.
Switzerland and the fight against the illicit trade of artworks, Dario Jucker interviewed by Swissinfo
What is Switzerland doing against the illicit trade in works of art and how successful are organised crime groups in continuing to traffic looted artefacts?
Dario Jucker talks to tvsvizzera/swissinfo.ch about looted art, the black market and the restitution of cultural goods
The report on culture in Tessin – The Art Newspaper
Dario writes an article on the 2020 Tessin report on culture in the Art Newspaper
The Josef & Anni Albers Foundation preserves the authenticity and the heritage of Josef Albers: another judgment for handling counterfeited artworks.
Another case of forgery and handling counterfeited Josef Albers artworks: the Josef & Anni Albers Foundation, counselled by Dario Jucker, obtains at the Court of Milan a judgment of 1 year and 8 months of prison and the damages restoration.
The new law on copyright becomes effective in Switzerland: a radical reform for the protection of photographs (even for non-creative ones).
The new copyright law entries into force in Switzerland. Dario publishes an article on the Swiss Literature Archive Bulletin, Passim review. Go to the article
The editor Dali Universe obtains the registration of the trademark “the signature of Salvador Dali” in Switzerland.
Counselled by Avv. Jucker, the editor Dali Universe has obtained the registration in Switzerland of the trademark “the signature of Salvador Dali” winning at the Administrative Federal Court against the registration opposition by the Gala Salvador Dali Foundation.
WEBINAR 22.01.2021 17:30-18:30 h – PUBLICATION OF "THE GOOD PRACTICES FOR COLLECTORS" curated by D. Jucker
We are pleased to inform you that a webinar will be held on January 22nd for the presentation of the volume “The good practices for collector”.
Participation is free (no prior registration is required) and you can access via the following link:
Join the meeting in Zoom
ID meeting: 258 756 0948 Passcode: esi2021
Dario Jucker holds a lecture on the forgery of artworks at the IULM University in Milan
The lawyer Dario Jucker holds a lecture on the forgery of artworks at the IULM University in Milan
THE PORTRAIT OF ISABELLA D'ESTE REMAINS IN SWITZERLAND, according to a decision by the Swiss Federal Court
The Swiss federal Court has denied the seizure and the restitution to the Italian authorities of a painting attributed to Leonardo da Vinci.
Italy got nothing. The Federal Court has ruled that the portrait of Isabella d’Este attributed to Leonardo will remain in Switzerland. By a judgment dated May 13, the judges have reversed the decisions of the Cantonal Public Prosecutor and of the Criminal Federal Court and ruled in favour of the owner of the painting, denying the seizure and the restitution to the Italian authorities.
The two previous decisions were released after the owner of the painting had been sentenced in Italy to 1 year and two months of prison for illicit traffic of artworks without an exportation license from Italy. This offence, however, has not the same structure in the Swiss law and for this reason double jeopardy has not been met.
Therefore, the Federal Court has ruled that the rogatory and the seizure requests could not be followed up.
Restitution of African cultural heritage - The Macron proposal
The Macron proposal to return to Africa the cultural heritage spoiled during colonialism: we have talked about this topic in a radio broadcast on air on 14 April.
The EU 2019/790 Copyright Directive
Il Parlamento europeo approva la direttiva 2019/70 sul diritto (digitale) d’autore.
Dario speaks on the newly introduced regulations in a interview at RSI
The international circulation of artworks – Opening Conference of the Judicial Year
At the Opening Conference of the Judicial Year, Dario intervenes with a presentation on the circulation of artworks between Switzerland and Italy
Law and photography – A conference at the Courthouse of Milan
Photographing works of art and cultural heritage: which freedom? At a conference at the Milan Courthouse, Dario explains the regulations on the photographs of artworks and the recent reform on the liberalization of the reproduction of cultural goods for non-profit purposes.
The new collective agreements between Prolitteris and the Association of Swiss Museums
In a conference at MASI Lugano, Dario introduces the recent collective agreements between Prolitteris and the Association of Swiss Museums on the reproduction of the artworks in public collections.
Conference in Lugano: The artworld and the wealth management
Dario speaks at a conference held in Lugano - The artworld and the wealth management
The $12 million stuffed shark: the curious economics of contemporary art by Donald Thompson.
Dario intervenes at Donald Thompson's presentation of the book “The $12 million stuffed shark: the curious economics of contemporary art”.
The Gurlitt collection
Another judgment for the Josef & Anni Albers Foundation at the Court of Milan.
Another case for the protection of Josef Albers' works: Dario obtains at the Court of Milan a judgment for the forgeries "Homage to the Square 1970" and "Study for the Homage to the Square R2EB2 1968" and the restoration of the damages to the civil party.
OATI Conference 9 June 2017 Palazzo dei Congressi Lugano "Between collecting and the market, the rules of the art world".
In Lugano, in a conference curated by Dario Jucker, different art law topics are covered, from authentications, to the archive's management, to the legislative reform introduced in Italy.
Dario has been interviewed by RSI on the 2016 Global Art Gallery Report.
Avv. Jucker interviewed by RSI Channel 2 in Cultural News on the Global Art Gallery Report 2016.
Avv. Jucker counselled a Swiss art dealer in the acquisition of a sculpture by Medardo Rosso.
Avv. Jucker has assisted a Lugano art gallery in the purchase of the Medardo Rosso Ecce Puer sculpture (bronze, unique piece) from an Italian private collection.
Dario Jucker interviewed by Channel 2 of the RSI on the notion of illegal copying in copyright law.
Dario Jucker interviewed by Channel 2 of the Swiss Italian Radio on the notion of illegal copying in scientific papers according to the Federal Copyright Law, Tuesday August 30, 2016 edition of 17.40.
The reform of the Italian Code on Cultural Heritage
Dario Jucker publishes an article on the reform of the Italian Code on Cultural Heritage - Art Law Magazine , Art Law Foundation, # 03.
Josef Albers’ forgeries: the Court of Brescia issues a guilty verdict
Avv. Jucker has assisted the Josef & Anni Albers Foundation obtaining a judgment of 1 year and 2 months of jail for the forgery of paintings by the artist Josef Albers.
The exhibition of the Giacomo and Ida Jucker collection with masterpieces of the XIX century opens at the Poldi Pezzoli Museum in Milan
An important exhibition at the Poldi Pezzoli traces the history of the Giacomo and Ida Jucker collection.