Matisse

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Guy Says He Threw $100M Worth of Stolen Art Away

But no one's really buying Yonathan Birn's story

(Newser) - A co-defendant in one of the world's biggest art heists testified in court Monday he destroyed and threw away five art masterpieces worth more than $100 million that were stolen by a thief nicknamed "the spider-man" by French media. Yonathan Birn, accused of receiving stolen goods, was among...

Picasso, Matisse, Monet Works Stolen in Huge Heist

Several paintings lifted from Kunsthal Museum

(Newser) - Several paintings have been stolen in an overnight break-in at a Dutch museum, including a Picasso, a Matisse, and two Monets, the BBC reports. The Kunsthal Museum has no permanent collection, and is currently showing works by more than 150 famous artists as part of the Triton Foundation's 20th...

Why We Love Gutsy Art Heists
 Why We Love Gutsy Art Heists 

Why We Love Gutsy Art Heists

Thefts of masterpieces just classier than other crimes

(Newser) - Sure, it was a tragic loss when a thief made off with a priceless haul of Picasso, Matisse, and Braque paintings yesterday. But it was also a pretty great story, Paul Farhi writes in the Washington Post . Big art heists "aren't like ordinary crimes, which are dreary and depressing,...

Russian Art Approved for UK Display
Russian Art Approved for UK Display

Russian Art Approved for UK Display

Moscow allows paintings to travel after diplomatic spat, fears of seizure

(Newser) - The Royal Academy in London will scramble to open a major exhibition of Russian-owned art after Russian officials finally granted permission to send the works to the UK, the Times of London reports. The show faced cancellation over Russian concerns that the works would be subject to seizure, a dispute...

Art Market Sails Over Turmoil
Art Market Sails Over Turmoil

Art Market Sails Over Turmoil

Weak dollar, overseas buyers help keep prices high

(Newser) - US financial markets were in chaos this year, but the art market certainly wasn't. The expanding ranks of the super-rich, the weak dollar, and emerging connoisseurs from Russia, China, India, and the Middle East kept auction houses in fine form, the AP reports, with postwar and contemporary works—including a...

Russia Cancels UK Painting Exhibition
Russia Cancels UK Painting Exhibition

Russia Cancels UK Painting Exhibition

Art reversal is latest salvo in worsening diplomatic tit-for-tat

(Newser) - A major exhibition of Russian-owned art in London was canceled today, the Guardian reports, the latest casualty of cooled relations in the wake of the Alexander Litvinenko affair. More than 100 paintings were to go on exhibition Jan. 26 at London's Royal Academy, but Russian agencies are now refusing the...

Matisse Pulls Impressive $33.6M
Matisse Pulls Impressive $33.6M

Matisse Pulls Impressive $33.6M

Art world breathes easier after first night of stellar sales

(Newser) - A nervous New York art world breathed a sigh of relief on the first night of the fall auctions yesterday when a Matisse painting fetched a whopping $33.6 million, far above its high estimate. Collectors and dealers are watching November's sales at Sotheby's and Christie's with anxiety, reports the...

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