ع
Heirs of the Fischer family have asked Sotheby’s to pull Vincent van Gogh’s “Châtaigniers en Fleurs,” also known as “Blossoming Chestnut Trees,” from its high-profile New York auction scheduled for November 18, according to a New York Times report cited across multiple outlets including The Times of Israel on November 14. Berlin lawyer Gunnar Schnabel, representing the American descendants, sent an email on November 12 to the auction house’s restitution head insisting the sale cannot proceed unless Sotheby’s proves the 1936 transaction occurred at full market value and that the family would have sold even absent Nazi rule. Schnabel’s message referenced the heirs’ readiness to pursue a fair outcome aligned with the 1998 Washington Principles on art looted during the Nazi era, a framework The Times of Israel noted as non-binding international guidance for resolving such disputes. The painting carries an estimate in the region of $180 million, which would set a new auction record for the artist if achieved.
The 1890 oil on canvas, measuring roughly 70 by 58 centimetres, was completed in Auvers-sur-Oise near Paris just two months before Van Gogh’s death at age 37, a Sotheby’s announcement on its newsroom stated ahead of the Legendary: The Blaquier-Arrieta Collection sale. It last appeared in public at the Guggenheim Museum in New York in 1964 and has since resided in private collections, including that of the Argentine Blaquier family since 1975, according to coverage in The Art Newspaper. Sotheby’s has backed the lot with a financial guarantee, a common practice for major consignments that shifts some risk from the seller, the auction house’s pre-sale materials indicated. The work forms the centrepiece of an evening auction expected to generate hundreds of millions across Impressionist and modern offerings.
Research compiled for the heirs traces the painting’s path through the S. Fischer Verlag publishing house, which Gottfried Bermann Fischer inherited before fleeing Berlin for Vienna in 1936 under growing Nazi restrictions, The Telegraph reported on November 14. The family deposited the artwork with Amsterdam dealer Walter Feilchenfeldt around 1932 or 1933 and later sold it while subject to the Reich flight tax and other financial penalties imposed on Jews seeking to emigrate, according to Schnabel’s assessment shared with The New York Times. Those pressures formed part of broader persecution that forced many Jewish families to liquidate assets at a loss during the period, a pattern documented in post-war restitution efforts referenced by the lawyer. The current owners acquired it decades after the war through standard market channels.
Sotheby’s acknowledged the claim in a statement issued on November 14, noting it had engaged in dialogue with the Fischer heirs over the painting’s provenance. “While our research to date has not established that the painting was sold under duress, we recognise the importance of engaging thoughtfully and constructively with the family and are committed to working toward a mutually satisfactory resolution,” the auction house said. The company has not confirmed whether the lot will still be offered on the scheduled date, The Telegraph added in its coverage. Such last-minute challenges have occasionally led to withdrawals or private settlements in the international art market.
Van Gogh works have commanded escalating prices in recent seasons, with a 1887 still life of books selling for $62.7 million at Sotheby’s in November 2025 and an 1890 orchard scene reaching $117.2 million at Christie’s in 2022, figures compiled by The Art Newspaper show. The potential $180 million result for “Châtaigniers en Fleurs” would eclipse those totals and reflect sustained demand for rare late-period landscapes despite wider economic headwinds affecting some sectors. Only a handful of the artist’s canvases from his final productive phase in Auvers remain in private hands, elevating their scarcity value according to Sotheby’s specialists. The Blaquier-Arrieta collection also includes pieces by Cézanne, Renoir and Pissarro that are expected to contribute to the sale’s overall performance.
The Washington Principles, endorsed by 44 governments in 1998, encourage institutions to identify looted artworks, publicise their histories and reach equitable solutions with claimants even when legal title may have passed, The Times of Israel noted in its summary of Schnabel’s position. Similar claims have surfaced in recent years involving other Van Gogh paintings, including a still-life “Sunflowers” now held by a Japanese insurer that heirs of a Jewish banker argue was sold under duress in 1934, a case still under appeal as reported by various outlets. Sotheby’s said it continues to review provenance for all lots with Nazi-era connections as standard practice in advance of major auctions. The current dispute underscores ongoing scrutiny of high-value works with gaps in ownership records from the 1930s.
