The Belgian Art Market during World War II

There is a large body of literature devoted to the fate of artworks looted during World War II. Despite this attention, the evolution of art markets in occupied Europe has received little attention. Furthermore, while most scholars focus their research on France and Germany, few studies concentrate on Belgium. This project fills this double gap by providing a study of the Belgian art markets under the Nazi occupation. On the basis of an original database tracking the prices of artworks sold between 1940 and 1945 in Brussels, we show that art markets in Belgium experienced a boom during the occupation. Due to the specificities of the economics of occupation, artworks were clearly perceived as interesting investments. Beyond the analysis of the art market, the database created in the framework of this research project may also prove to be a useful tool for provenance researchers. Indeed, the Belgian art market was very dynamic and participated actively in the European art trade during this period.