Moving Forward: Allegations of Nazi Affiliations Against Former Gallery Director Ferdinand Eckhardt
Main Hall. Photo by Lisa Stinner-Kun
Over the last few weeks, allegations claiming former Gallery Director Ferdinand Eckhardt was affiliated with the Nazi party have been in the news. Eckhardt was director from 1953 to 1974, having immigrated to Canada in 1953. Recent allegations and research show that while living in Germany in the 1930s, he was a Nazi supporter.
“The Gallery approached recent reports linking Eckhardt to the Nazi party with the utmost seriousness, and immediately launched an internal investigation that included reviewing the Gallery’s archives, researching the recently released files at the Manitoba Archives, and taking actions to examine related German-language materials,” says WAG-Qaumajuq Director & CEO Stephen Borys.
Based on our own independent investigation so far, WAG-Qaumajuq has started the process of removing Eckhardt’s name from the main entrance hall, the website, and all other gallery materials. This decision came under the recommendation of the Director & CEO and the approval of the WAG Board of Governors to remove Eckhardt’s name from all Gallery locations.
This process will take time and updates will be shared with the public.
The Gallery will continue to research the provenance of Eckhardt and the Eckhardt-Gramatté Foundation donations to WAG-Qaumajuq. This research starts with looking for any gaps in the artwork’s ownership during the Nazi era. The purpose of this research is to ensure that if any Nazi-confiscated art was discovered in the collection that all efforts would be made to return it to the rightful owners or their heirs.
The Gallery has been doing this research for several decades; and while no gaps in the ownership in the Eckhardt-Gramatté Collection at WAG-Qaumajuq have been found, this investigative work has not been concluded. The Gallery is committed to examining any new allegations regarding the collection and we will keep you updated as we move further into this investigation.
WAG-Qaumajuq has worked hard to be a leader in making institutional changes to create a more equitable Gallery where all feel represented and welcome. All this work around Eckhardt’s past is part of a continued journey towards equity, decolonization, and reconciliation – in all its forms.
Thank you for your patience and support as we move forward. If you have any questions at all, please do not hesitate to contact us at publicrelations@wag.ca.
4 thoughts on "Moving Forward: Allegations of Nazi Affiliations Against Former Gallery Director Ferdinand Eckhardt"
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I find it bizarre that Eckhardt’s contribution to the Gallery is being diminished by removing references to him. My mother was a Jewish refugee from Berlin, my father similarly so from Czechoslovakia. They both lost family in the Holocaust. So it is not to downplay the evils of the Nazi regime. But he was conscripted, not SS. There is no evidence he perpetrated any war crimes. Many many people were caught up in their enthusiasm for the Third Reich in the early to mid 1930s. Some changed their minds later on, and I suspect Eckhardt fell into that category. There is also no evidence he continued any Nazi activities in Canada, but with his wife built a new life. Her musical contributions were considerable.
We appreciate your thoughtful comment. These are definitely complicated issues for many institutions and individuals in Canada and WAG-Qaumajuq is among them. We are all working through this. Thank you.
Every soldier conscripted into the German Military signed an oath of Allegiance to Hitler. He worked for Bayer in Marketing; the fact that it had a subsidiary that did something wrong is an odd tie. The Bush Family did business with the Nazi party throughout the war. Canada did business with Germany and was a McKenzie King was a leading driver to recognize the Nazi Regime.
“In June 1937, Mackenzie King paid the first visit by a Canadian prime minister to Germany. Mackenzie King had grown up in Berlin, Ontario (modern Kitchener), a mostly German-speaking city at the time, and was fluent in German. Mackenzie King met Adolf Hitler on 19 June 1937 in Berlin, and in an account of the meeting that he sent to the British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, Mackenzie King wrote that “the impression gained by this interview was a very favorable one.” Mackenzie King praised Hitler as a warm, caring man who was deeply concerned about the problems of ordinary people and stated he was impressed “by the very positive manner in which Hitler spoke of the determination of himself and his colleagues not to permit any resort to war. Mackenzie King called Hitler a “man of deep sincerity and a genuine patriot” who sometimes had to use ruthless methods because of the “big problems” he was faced with.”
So, we judge a great Manitobian based on a Magazine article from a period when Canada considered normal relations with Germany.
With ZERO investigation from any of the multitude of organizations that investigated this time of event,
How many people in this world worked for Bayer? Do we hold them all in account for an affiliate action?
Did we just not long ago, in this past Election, Elect a premier not based on the mistakes of his youth? But who he is today?
And here we tarnish a great Manitobian over a magazine article that has been widely criticized for lack of citation and proper investigation.
Hindsight is 20/20 and it’s easier to simplify history in black or white categories. Shall we forget Bayer Siemens BMW Volkswagen IBM had affiliations with nazi germany, these brands and money’s are scattered all over the globe. Is this “selective” virtue signaling?