Description - Art Theft: and the Case of the Stolen Turners by Sandy Nairne
The theft of high-profile works of art is not new, and recurs on a fairly regular basis: 2011 marks the centenary of the theft of the Mona Lisa from the Louvre, Paris and fifty years since the theft of Goya's Duke of Wellington from the National Gallery, London. In 1994 two important paintings by J.M.W. Turner (then valued at 24 million pounds) were stolen from a German public gallery while on loan from Tate Britain, London. Sandy Nairne (then Director of Programmes at the Tate) became centrally involved in the pursuit of the pictures, and the negotiation for their return. In Art Theft he relates for the first time this complex, 8-year, cloak-and-dagger story, which finally concluded in 2002 with the Turners going back on public display. In addition to this narrative, Nairne discusses other high-value art thefts, trying to resolve the puzzle of why thieves steal well-known works of art which cannot be sold, even on the black market. The author focuses on the theft and recovery of works of art, while acknowledging that they form part of a much broader field of theft, looting and illicit dealings with art and antiquities around the world.
How these different concepts of value can be understood are revealed in this book as the author unravels stories of art theft, questions of motivation and the surrounding ethical issues. How art theft also plays a part in fiction - in crime novels and films - is also considered, together with the construction of the image of the art thief, the specialist detective and the mysterious figure of the hidden, criminal collector. More than eight years of pursuing the missing Turners, and a further period of research and interviews with the key players in the drama, have fed into this vivid, personal account of a hidden art world. A compelling story for our times, it will interest all those intrigued by mysteries in the fields of art and history, and those wishing to follow an investigation into how great art can be captured by determined criminals.
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