Reposted from ArtGuard

A Willem DeKooning painting was recently discovered among items in a small and insignificant estate sale in Arizona.  (NY Times: de Kooning Found) The piece went missing from a museum at the University of Arizona in 1985 and very quickly left a cold trail. It now seems likely it was stolen by a couple named Jerome and Rita Alter, both deceased, but the evidence is still circumstantial.

The interesting thing about the case is that from what is known it appears that at no time was there ever an attempt to sell the painting. No ransom was ever sought. No one claims to have had information stemming from any indiscreet conversations by the couple. The only conclusion that can be drawn from this is that the Alters, both of whom had strong interests in the arts, likely took it for their own personal and very private enjoyment. It was purported to have been seen behind a door in the corner of their bedroom by someone who had no idea who the painter was.

This certainly places a dubious status on the whereabouts of potentially thousands of pieces of stolen art and artifacts. We know perpetrators wait for an opportunity to sell stolen works or the right occasion to leverage them for some legal gain or reveal themselves in some careless way. But how many of the stolen works are just objects of affection, either in the possession of the thief or someone who commissioned the theft, and carefully concealed.

I return to a refrain and a reminder that contrary to the remarks – and maybe even deep rooted belief – by some that stealing high value art is a fool’s game because it can’t be sold without someone in the art world being alert to the transaction. It completely discounts the idea of emotional and aesthetic appreciation of art, the very thing we go to museums and galleries to satisfy. This may surprise anyone caught up in the wildly inflationary art market where high-end pieces are bought one day and sold a short time later simply for financial gain.

 Yes, there are people who would go to great lengths to own a piece of art that they would be quite satisfied to enjoy themselves, alone, resisting any urge to satisfy their ego by letting the world know they won this prize. This may be one of the best arguments for securing art against disappearance.

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