Art News: New Gardner Museum Lead, Herzog Court Victory, ‘Genius’ to Profile Picasso
The art world is full of fascinating exhibitions, intriguing discoveries, and moments that shape history. Here are some of the latest news items making art headlines.
New Leads in Gardner Museum Theft
“The Concert” (c. 1665), Johannes Vermeer. (Public domain. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)
A Dutch private investigator claims to have new leads on recovering $500 million in stolen art from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston.
The New York Daily News spoke with investigator Arthur Brand, who says he is in negotiations with sources connected to the 13 paintings famously stolen from the museum in 1990. The paintings include works by Rembrandt van Rijn, Johannes Vermeer, and Édouard Manet.
“These are some of the most famous paintings ever produced by mankind, and it’s time to bring them back,” Brand told CBS Boston.
The article states Brand has “two good leads” that make him believe the stolen artworks are in Ireland. One lead involves photos from a Dutch criminal, while the other lead was not disclosed.
The museum recently increased its reward for the missing artwork to $10 million, though Brand insists in the article that the “$10 million will not be for me.”
U.S. Court Rules in Favor of Family Reclaiming Art Seized by Nazis
The Hungarian National Gallery (Photo courtesy of Dimitris Kamaras)
The U.S. federal appeals court rejected Hungary’s attempts to throw out a lawsuit from a family seeking to reclaim a $100-million art collection seized by Nazis.
An article from Bloomberg states this is the second time in four years the U.S. court rejected Hungary’s request. The ruling opens the way for the claims to proceed to a lower court judge.
The Herzog family is seeking the return of 40 works of art that belonged to their ancestor, Baron Mór Lipót Herzog. The Hungarian banker assembled a private collection of more than 2,000 works by artists including El Greco, Diego Velazquez, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, and Claude Monet. Bloomberg reports the art was looted during the Nazi occupation of Hungary and is in possession of Hungarian museums and a university.
The family sued in 2010 after struggling for decades to recover the art.
Picasso to Become Focus of NatGeo’s ‘Genius’ Show
“Picasso, Son Oeuvre, et Son Public” 347 Series: No. 1 (1968), Pablo Picasso. B. 1481; Baer 1496
ScreenRant reports that season two of National Geographic’s “Genius” show will examine the life of legendary artist Pablo Picasso.
Executive Producer Ron Howard said hours of debate and discussion went into the decision to choose Picasso. He describes Picasso as “an enigmatic figure, famous, a household name,” but “you don’t really know the story of his life, or what inspired him, drove him, troubled him.”
The season will portray Picasso and how he achieved artistic greatness throughout his 80-year career. There is no word on who will portray the famous Cubist, but the season will air in 2018.
Season one of the “Genius” focused on the life of Albert Einstein. Geoffrey Rush portrayed the scientist’s older years while Johnny Flynn starred as the younger version. The show was lauded for its high production value and non-linear narratives.
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