Henri 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...

Nazi-Era Art Hoarder: I Want My Pictures Back

Cornelius Gurlitt relents, gives interview

(Newser) - A German man caught hoarding $1.3 billion in Nazi-era art has relented to the media glare and given an interview—in which he describes himself as a sad, lonely man who had nothing but great art to keep him company. "I'm just a very quiet person,"...

Recluse Who Held Trove of Nazi Art Has Vanished

Prosecutor says officials don't know where Cornelius Gurlitt is right now

(Newser) - Yesterday came the news that German tax inspectors investigating an elderly loner in 2011 uncovered a stash of Nazi-looted art believed to be worth $1.35 billion. Today come the details: The BBC reports the total haul recovered from Cornelius Gurlitt's Munich apartment was 1,258 unframed works and...

$1.3B of Nazi-Seized Art Found in Squalid Apartment

Dealer's son sat on huge stash for decades in Munich

(Newser) - German tax inspectors investigating an elderly loner were staggered to find a cache of 1,500 masterpieces stashed amid expired cans of food in the man's squalid Munich apartment. The art—believed to include works by Matisse, Picasso, and Chagall—was confiscated by Nazi authorities or bought for rock-bottom...

Dutch Find 139 Artworks Likely Looted by Nazis

Netherlands completes major review of all museum collections

(Newser) - Dutch museums have found 139 artworks that may have been looted during the Nazi era, they announced today. Among the works: One of the country's top tourist draws, Henri Matisse's 1921 "Odalisque" painting of a half-nude reclining woman at Amsterdam's Stedelijk museum, along with 68 more...

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...

FBI Busts 2 Selling $3M Stolen Matisse

Masterpiece had been missing for a decade

(Newser) - A decade after it was stolen, crooks thought they had found a buyer for a $3 million Henri Matisse masterpiece. But when they delivered the goods to a Miami Beach location, they were busted by undercover FBI agents, according to officials. Matisse's 1925 "Odalisque in Red Pants" was...

Stolen Masterpieces 'Crushed by Garbage Truck'

Paris cops reveal fruits of art heist probe

(Newser) - A Paris watchmaker says he threw out several priceless works of art before being arrested last year, the Telegraph reports. Revealing a 17-month investigation today, police say a Serb nicknamed "Spiderman" stole works by Picasso, Matisse, Braque, and others from a poorly guarded Paris museum in May 2010. An...

Paris Heist Museum's Alarm Was On the Fritz

System 'partially malfunctioning' since March

(Newser) - So how does a lone thief manage to steal five masterpieces from a museum? It doesn't help when the alarm isn't working. The mayor of Paris says one of the systems at the Museum of Modern Art had been "partially malfunctioning" since March, reports ABC News of Australia . The...

Picasso, Matisse Stolen in $635M Paris Heist

 Picasso, Matisse Stolen 
 in $635M Paris Heist 
THIEF BREAKS WINDOW, WALKS IN
May 20, 2010 7:27 AM CDT

Picasso, Matisse Stolen in $635M Paris Heist

Paris Museum of Modern Art finds 5 masterpieces missing

(Newser) - Five paintings—including masterpieces by Matisse and Picasso—were reported missing from the Paris Museum of Modern Art this morning, the AP reports. Staff discovered that a window and padlock had been broken, and security footage shows a person climbing in through the window. The works are worth an estimated...

Arts Nazis Stole Goes on Exhibit
Arts Nazis Stole Goes on Exhibit
Feb 20, 2008 1:07 PM CST

Arts Nazis Stole Goes on Exhibit

French/Israeli exhibit looks for owners of plundered paintings

(Newser) - Authorities in France and Israel are attempting to return paintings seized by Nazis during World War II to families to whom they belong, and have organized an exhibit of 50 “orphaned” works in Israel to solicit rightful claims. The tranquil themes of many of the works in the exhibit,...

Disputed Show Opens to Raves
Disputed Show Opens to Raves
NEW RELEASE
Jan 23, 2008 12:00 PM CST

Disputed Show Opens to Raves

Royal Academy nearly canceled From Russia

(Newser) - London's Royal Academy opened its blockbuster exhibition of Russian-owned paintings last night, after narrowly escaping cancellation by the Russians last month. Critics agree that the stunner of From Russia is Matisse's 1910 The Dance, which rarely leaves the Hermitage in St. Petersburg. "It blasts any picture near it off...

12 Stories