Imminent closure of Irma Stern Museum propels art activists into action amid rumour mongering and rebuttals within the powerful corridors of the art world
The activists are calling for “Irma Stern™ Trust to provide transparency and accountability regarding the future of Irma Stern’s The Firs and the Collections” and Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture Gayton McKenzie to intervene. Strauss & Co Chairman Frank Kilbourn has dismissed rumours doing the rounds in art circles that he has been a trustee or chairperson of the Irma Stern Trust.
By Edward Tsumele, CITYLIFE/ARTS Editor
The news could not have broken at the most ironic and inconvenient of times. To start with iconic South African painter, the late Irma Stern’s portrait of a Cape Muslim woman last week achieved spectacular results at the latest Strauss &Co auction sale in Cape Town. The artwork sold for R21.7 million, snatched by a phone bidder. This after the determined bidder slugged it and out-boxed other-would-be Irma Stern owners present in the room during the fiercely competitive auction process. But in the irony of ironies the same week news broke out that the Irma Stern Museum in the Western Cape is closing down. The fate of the valuable art works housed there, believed to be worth hundreds of million of Rands remains uncertain as no new home has yet been identified.
This news has propelled a group of art stakeholders going by the name of Friends of Irma Stern Museum to panic and worry about the fate of the museum, and of course its art works, that have seen many a visitor go there, including art history researchers from around the globe.
The Friends of Irma Stern Museum are now in full action trying to save the museum through fundraising, knocking on the doors of those who have the financial means to come in, as well as campaigning against the impending closure of the museum through a petition doing rounds on social media platforms.
“We have launched Friends of Irma Stern Museum on Facebook in order to receive news and information https://www.facebook.com/friends.of.irma.stern.museum/
The money donated to Change.org although very worthy does not come to us. Please find our FNB Account details on our Facebook Account to assure your donation lands in the right, accountable hands. We call on the Irma Stern™ Trust to provide transparency and accountability regarding the future of Irma Stern’s The Firs and the Collections.
Irma Stern stipulated in her Will that on her death, which occurred in 1966, her collections (which included her own artworks as well as all her artefacts) were to be administered by a Committee of Trustees. These same Trustees entered an administrative agreement with UCT (University of Cape Town) on the 11th of June 1969. The agreement resulted in Irma Stern’s home, The Firs, opening in 1972 as the Irma Stern Museum.
For the last 50 years, the Irma Stern™ Trust and the University of Cape Town (UCT) have run The Firs as the Irma Stern Museum. The same Trust agreement provides for the return of the property (The Firs) to the Irma Stern™ Trust under the same conditions that allowed UCT to acquire it in 1969. Upon the dissolution of this management agreement, the Irma Stern™ Trust receives the property back for R1.00 plus costs. The dissolution of this agreement was announced in a recent press release issued jointly by the Marketing Department of UCT and the Irma Stern™ Trust.
In a sale of 124 Irma Stern™ Trust works via the June 2022 Strauss & Co sale, a sum of R24 million was raised. These proceeds were earmarked for conservation of the artworks in the collection. We would like to know the following from the Irma Stern Trust: Where did the R24 million in proceeds go after the sale? How much was spent on administration and payment of dividends? How much does the Trust hold in assets and money at present? Is the House and estate still in the Trust’s name, or has all or parts of it already been sold off? If so, can the Trust explain how this was beneficial to Stern’s Will? Furthermore, what are the Trust’s future plans to promote the life and legacy of Irma Stern, which includes Stern’s home and her Estate? No artwork or collection is to leave the Museum until SAHRA(South African Heritage Resources Agency), HWC (Heritage Western Cape) and the National Department of Arts, Culture and Sport resolve the matter. That the Irma Stern™ Trust undertakes to renovate and restore The Firs/Irma Stern Museum to the highest conservation standards so that the Irma Stern Museum once again can welcome back visitors and safely accommodate the Irma Stern™ Collection administered by the Irma Stern™ Trust,” the campaigner stated.
They also called for authorities to intervene to disrupt the impending closure.
“We also call upon The Minister of the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture, Mr Gayton Mackenzie, the Provincial Minister of Cultural Affairs and Sport, Mr Ricardo Mackenzie, the Mayor of Cape Town, Mr Geordin Hill-Lewis to intervene, and the Cape Town Heritage Foundation and as many Art, Culture, Heritage aficionados and supporters of the Irma Stern Museum to sign and share this Petition. The goal of this petition is to hold the Irma Stern™ Trust accountable and foster due process and public participation regarding the future of the Irma Stern Museum (The Firs) and the Irma Stern™ Trust collections. ”
However Frank Kilbourn, a member of the Irma Stern Museum (ISM) Committee and who is also Chairman of Strauss &Co, the leading art auction house in Africa, on Tuesday 4, October, 2025, released a statement clarifying his role in the ISM Committee as well as the position of Strauss &Co in the museum closure drama. He also refuted rumours currently doing rounds in the powerful corridors of South Africa’s art world regarding his and Straus & Co’s role in the Irma Stern Museum closure saga.
However reading the tone of his statement it becomes clear that a lot is at stake and people’s reputations stand to be sullied if the matter is not handled with care and responsibly in this raging debate in a context that appears to be increasingly a messy art affair. This has of course the potential to negatively affect the legacy of one of the most adored South Africa artists, whose art is a much sought after investment property globally today.
“I write to you about the recent closure of the Irma Stern Museum in Cape Town, a sensitive matter that potentially affects everyone interested in South African art and the legacy of one of its greatest artists.
At Strauss & Co we are dedicated to promoting the legacy of modern and contemporary artists. The South African-born, German-trained artist, Irma Stern plays a leading role in this regard. Stern’s work has been widely exhibited internationally for well over a century, most recently at the Venice Biennale in 2024 and at Brücke Museum, Berlin in 2025, drawing renewed attention to her significant role in the early beginnings of German Expressionism and its diffusion in South Africa.
Equally, Stern has a proven track record in the primary and secondary markets. This was confirmed by the recent enthusiastic bidding for her 1946 painting Malay (Black Headdress), which sold for R21.7 million, a record price for a Stern painting depicting a female sitter.
Collectors continue to adore her work and her reputation as an important Modernist Artist is gaining international recognition, driven by local collectors, academics and art institutions such as Strauss & Co.
Even more importantly, “Irma” and her home, The Firs in Rosebank, Cape Town, which housed the Irma Stern Museum, (“ISM”) has become an integral and much-loved part of the local art landscape.
In the context of this, we at Strauss & Co, as well as many Capetonians and art lovers across the world, were shocked and taken aback by recent, unexpected announcements about the closure of the ISM.
I herewith wish to clarify details as they are currently known to me both from the point of view as Chairperson of Strauss & Co and as the Vice-Chairperson of the ISM Committee, until recently.
At the outset, I need to correct the rumour that I am or have been a trustee or chairperson of the Irma Stern Trust, in fact I have never been a trustee thereof and am not involved in the running or affairs of the Trust at all.
I did however, serve on the ISM Committee, by invitation of the University of Cape Town and was joined at the committee meetings by representatives of the Trust and officers of UCT. With all the rumours doing the rounds, I believe it is important to provide some context to the operational structure under which the ISM operated until now.
The collaboration between UCT and the Trust lasted for several decades and served the ISM well for a long period in time. Broadly speaking, the legal arrangements in place during this period, provided that the Irma Stern Collection (artworks and collectibles, collectively worth hundreds of millions of rand, and, more importantly, irreplaceable from an art historical perspective) were looked after by the Trust, including insurance and curatorial preservation, whilst UCT was custodian of The Firs, the building where the Collection was housed and provided for the staffing and day to day operations of the ISM.
The commercial rationale for the relationship has come under strain in recent years, especially given the increasing costs of maintaining the ageing Firs building at a level compatible with “museum“ standards and the increased operating deficit involved in running the ISM as a functioning cultural centre.
From the Trust’s perspective, it had to comply with its fiduciary duties to ensure that the assets of the Trust and Irma Stern’s legacy were protected and enhanced. Like almost every university in our country, UCT faced budgetary constraints and had to prioritise its spending, focusing on its core activities, of which the running of the ISM was clearly not a key component.
This is a dilemma that every business person can appreciate and one, sadly, which many of the cultural institutions in our country face right now.The Trust and UCT entered into negotiations to solve this dilemma and we have noted the content of the press releases setting out the new arrangement agreed between themselves.
It is regrettable that neither of the parties took the ISM Committee members into their confidence whilst negotiating the arrangement, nor did they seek the input of industry leaders and interested parties that have dedicated significant time, capital and energy in furthering Irma Stern’s legacy locally and abroad.
This lead to a significant under-appreciation of the integral part that the ISM plays in the cultural landscape of the Western Cape and the deep love and affection that art lovers have for The Firs and the ISM, it being an irreplaceable cultural icon in our city and the only permanent home of a major artist in our country.
The haphazard way in which the decision was communicated did not assist in providing context to the decision nor insight into the future plans for such an important institution.
I believe the situation calls for a renewed effort by Nedbank and the trustees of the Irma Stern Trust to enter into a dialogue with affected role players and leaders in the art industry to examine the merits of alternative ways to deal with the challenges they face.
We noted the belated invitation to a public meeting to be held at the Nedbank Head Office at the Clocktower Precinct in the V & A Waterfront at 15h00 on 13 November 2025. Whilst this is a welcome next step, and I would urge all interested parties to attend, it is still an after the fact meeting and on its own, will not be adequate. Nedbank has to engage with industry leaders directly as well.
It was heart-warming to see how vigorous the support for the museum and Irma Sternhas been in recent days. Harnessing this interest and goodwill could provide an opportunity for renewed thinking about the future of such an iconic asset.
At Strauss & Co, we look forward to being part of this debate and are willing to play a constructive role in facilitating a deeper understanding of the issues involved as well as generating and examining new solutions.It is undoubtable that Irma Stern is one of, if not, the leading modernist artist our country ever produced.
Many museums, auction houses, galleries, academics and art collectors have contributed time, expertise, energy and capital in re-enforcing and expanding her legacy.
Ultimately, the Irma Stern Trust could benefit significantly from including such interested parties in the body of trustees and advisors to assist in shepherding this treasure in our midst to even greater heights and recognition,” says Kilbourn. The art executive is an influential figure in the art world in South Africa in his role as chairman of Strauss& Co through which most of the collectors with an Irma stern prefer to sell their valuable possessions.
At the time of publishing, the status and the future of the museum was still not clear. CITYLIFE/ARTS will update the article as more information is received about the way forward.