Republic of Austria, Maria Altmann Agree
To Arbitrate Klimt Paintings Dispute

A dispute over six Gustav Klimt paintings will now be heard by arbitrators in Austria

LOS ANGELES (May 18, 2005) -- The Republic of Austria and Maria Altmann of Los Angeles have agreed to end their litigation in U.S. District Court regarding six Gustav Klimt paintings, and to submit the dispute to binding arbitration in Austria.

The agreement will clear the way for a prompt and conclusive decision on the ownership of the paintings, most of which have been housed in the Austrian National Gallery for more than fifty years. The Austrian National Gallery, as well as Mrs. Altmann’s four co-heirs, are also parties to the agreement.

Under the agreement, the Los Angeles litigation will be dismissed and not subject to re-filing by any party. The agreement calls for the creation of a panel of three Austrian arbitrators chosen by the parties. The parties have agreed that they will accept the decision of the arbitration panel as final and without any right of appeal.

The issues before the panel have previously been addressed by the Austrian Art Advisory Board. That Board was created by Austrian legislation in 1998 to provide for the review of ownership of certain artworks in Austrian Federal Museums. Mrs. Altmann has criticized the decision of the Board with respect to the Klimt paintings at issue in the Los Angeles litigation.

The dispute involves six paintings by Austrian artist Gustav Klimt. Mrs. Altmann’s aunt, Adele Bloch-Bauer, had been a patron of the arts in early 20th Century Vienna, and one of Klimt’s prominent supporters. She was the model for at least two of Klimt’s paintings, including Adele Bloch-Bauer I, which is one of the paintings in dispute.

Adele Bloch-Bauer died in 1925, and included a provision in her will concerning the disposition of five of the Klimt paintings at issue, the legal effect of which under Austrian law is disputed by the parties. The parties also disagree about the legal effect of certain transactions between the Bloch-Bauer estate and the Gallery in 1948 regarding the paintings.

A sixth painting not included in Adele Bloch-Bauer’s will also is at issue and has been the subject of a claim by another family, the heirs of Amalie Zuckerkandl. Mrs. Zuckerkandl’s heirs, along with the Republic of Austria and Mrs. Altmann and her co-heirs, have agreed to submit the dispute regarding that painting to the Board, with a right of appeal to the arbitration panel.

Gustav Klimt (1862-1918) was a prominent Austrian artist, a major figure in the Art Nouveau movement. The paintings involved in the dispute are Adele Bloch-Bauer I, Adele Bloch-Bauer II, Beechwood, Apple Tree I, Houses in Unterach am Attersee and Amalie Zuckerkandl.