"The Art Of Deception" - Part 2

In my last article I wanted to stress the phrase “caveat emptor” or buyer beware when it comes to searching for that valuable piece of artwork online or at auction houses around the world. In this, the second article in the series I will go into the world of art theft, the reasons people steal it and what could happen to you if it is found on your wall.

Recently, while watching the 1964 movie “The Train” starring Burt Lancaster, my thoughts drifted into the history of art theft. The movie depicts a theft of numerous French works of art by the Germans during World War II and how members of the French Resistance eventually stopped the train before it reached Berlin. This movie was based upon a true story and it got me to thinking. If the Germans took art during the war, what was the purpose and how has art theft transcended into today’s society? The bottom line comes down to greed and the almighty dollar.

Mary Boone, art collector and gallery owner once said “There are not only more people collecting, there are more people collecting for the wrong reasons, basically as the latest get rich quick scheme. They buy art like lottery tickets.” When you have this many people collecting as a trend, the purpose of the art itself changes and it becomes more of a currency, and that’s what art thieves thrive on. They steal the art and then sell it at a later date, usually to private collectors who pay large amounts of money for the piece. The artwork is then nestled away in a home somewhere until it resurfaces years later at an auction, estate sale, or even the occasional yard sale. Yes, I said yard sale.

Two years ago a woman purchased an interesting painting at a yard sale for fifty cents. She bought the painting because she claimed it spoke to her on an artistic level. A friend of the purchaser, an art collector, was intrigued by her find. He asked if he could take a closer look at the piece and did some lab testing on the art only to find that his friend had bought an original Picasso for fifty cents. The painting was worth 1.2 million dollars. The woman’s story made it to the papers and the seller of the painting decided she wanted to get her cut. She sued the purchaser and lost in court. The judge stated that any piece bought at a yard sale was the property of the purchaser. This type of occurrence is rare, yet it does happen.

In 1990, thieves disguised as policemen gained access to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and successfully executed the largest art heist in modern history. The thirteen priceless works have yet to be recovered. Investigations are still underway and the leads have all but dried up. Where could these masterpieces have gone?

It is likely that they were sold to private collectors, due to the fact that there were other pieces in the museum that were worth even more than the ones stolen. The pieces seem to be part of a shopping list of sorts. The thieves picked out specific pieces and only those pieces. Why? Did they not know the value of the pieces 10 feet away from the ones they stole? It is highly unlikely. The thieves knew what they were coming for and executed the plan to perfection. With pieces of such notoriety and price, they would have had a very hard time selling them without someone knowing just what they were. That’s why the focus of the investigation remains to this day on private collectors.

In 2004, the Federal Bureau of Investigation launched a new division. It is called the Art Theft Program and their Art Crime Team consists of 12 special agents who work around the clock gathering information and tracking down leads to return the world’s most historical and valuable stolen artwork. It is reported by the FBI that art losses are estimated at around 6 billion dollars annually. They also created the National Stolen Art File which is a computerized index of reported stolen art from around the world. The Art Crime Team has recovered 850 items of cultural property to date with an estimated value of 65 million dollars. Art theft may be bigger then many of us realize. It is number three on the list of money making crimes around the world with only drugs and guns preceding it. How in fact can the public even try to comprehend this? It is easy. Think of art as money, money can be used as loans or collateral for something else. It has been discovered that some thieves are stealing art these days to use as collateral for drugs. They know a painting is worth 1million dollars, so they in turn steal it, give it to a dealer as collateral for around half a million dollars worth of drugs. The dealer can then sell the painting and get his money back plus interest if needed. This FBI and DEA have been working on the art/drug connection for some time, yet now it is clearer where history has taken us. The business of art has taken a dangerous turn.

Art theft can affect any of us. Recently, producer/director Steven Spielberg found that out the hard way. An employee of Mr. Spielberg’s happened to be checking the FBI Art Theft Program web site and noticed a painting that looked all too familiar.

The painting was in fact an original Norman Rockwell titled “Russian Schoolroom” and it was hanging on the wall of Spielberg’s office. The employee immediately called Spielberg who in turn called the FBI. Sure enough, it was the original which he had purchased at auction years before, however the painting was stolen before the purchase and before it had reached its final destination on the wall of Spielberg’s office. What options did he have? He had the same options as any one of us would have. He turned the artwork over to the FBI until they could figure out what to do. Will he ever get his artwork back? Maybe, maybe not. This is up to the courts to decide. When it comes to art theft, it doesn’t matter who you are, the outcome will usually be the same. I am sure that a man of Spielberg’s stature would have had the painting insured, yet will that cover anything if he loses it? It’s hard to say. All I can tell you is that you have to be careful out there. Remember caveat emptor? This is all we can do to protect ourselves. Know your dealers, look for that historical paper trail, certificate of authenticity or anything else that may give you a clue as to the item you will purchase. Do your research. Check out books like “The Rescue Artist” by Edward Dolnick, “The Irish Game” by Matthew Hart and “Museum of the Missing” by Simon Houpt, or watch a beautifully created documentary called “Stolen” by Rebecca Dreyfus.

In the next issue I will continue the “Art of Deception” series by taking a look at the more scientific side of art theft. I will talk to you about how forensics has taken on art theft to different level, how they can check the age and authenticity of a piece, and what the future holds in the fight against the theft of history’s art and artifacts.

Erik J. Ekstrom   >> Art of Deception - Part 1   >> Art of Deception - Part 3

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