Museum Security website statistics; over 1000 hits per week

June 3, 2001

CONTENTS:




- painting stolen from FedEx Toronto office, after passing through Canadian Customs
- Re: New move to prosecute museum
- Upcoming IFAR Evening in New York on Early Netherlandish Fakes
- Money Laundering Charges for Art Dealers (Art dealer served time for fencing stolen works)
- Art experts fight to stop da Vinci's Magi 'facelift'
- Collectors Beware: It's Hurricane Season Again! -- Timely Advice from AXA Art Insurance On How to Protect Art and Collectibles
- Two useful publications on WW.II provenance research
- The Art Newspaper this week's top stories (THE ART NEWSPAPER VISITS THE DEALERS OF PESHAWAR, PAKISTAN ___________________________________________

A theft:

Lost or stolen from FedEx Toronto office,
after passing through Canadian Customs
http://www.geocities.com/zellerpainting/

Subject:

Re: New move to prosecute museum


To: "Museum Security Network" securma@xs4all.nl
From: jonathan.bloom@weil.com
Date sent: Fri, 1 Jun 2001 11:07:29 -0400
I was just catching up with the April 5, 2001 edition of MSN and noted an error in
Christopher Seal's piece on the Elgin Marbles that is worth noting for the record: Pergamum is
not modern Perge; it is modern Bergama.

Upcoming IFAR Evening in New York on Early Netherlandish Fakes.

Title:

Early Netherlandish Paintings or Twentieth-Century Fakes? A Tale of Deception

Speaker:

Maryan Ainsworth, Senior Research Fellow, the Metropolitan Museum of Art

Date:

June 27, 2001; 6 - 8pm

The talk is based on ground-breaking new research that Dr. Ainsworth has been doing on this subject utilizing scholarly documents, connoisseurship, and scientific examination. She has uncovered a major group of fakes, some of which have entered museum collections. Admission is free to IFAR supporters/members; reduced for IFAR Journal subscribers and full-time students; and $25 for the public. A reception follows the talk. Advanced reservations are required and space is limited. For more information and a reservation form, please call IFAR at (212) 391-6234. IFAR (the International Foundation for Art Research) is a not-for-profit educational and research organization dedicated to integrity in the visual arts. This program is part of IFAR's long-standing series of talks and panels in the visual arts.
Sincerely, Sharon Flescher,
Executive Director, IFAR
kferg@ifar.org

Money Laundering Charges for Art Dealers

By THE NEW YORK TIMES
Two New York City art dealers, Shirley D. Sack, 73 and Arnold K. Katzen, 62, have been charged with conspiring to launder $4.1 million in drug money after being apprehended in an undercover sting in Boston, federal authorities said. According to the Associated Press, the two were arrested on Thursday at the Ritz Carlton Hotel as they attempted to sell paintings, which they claimed were originals by Modigliani and Degas, to a federal agent posing as a drug dealer. Alan M. Stewart, a Stamford, Conn., art dealer who was not present during the undercover sting, was charged with conspiring to set up the transaction. Court papers identified Ms. Sack as a wholesaler of art and jewelry, and principal of Shirley D. Sack, Ltd., 300 East 56th Street, and Mr. Katzen as principal of American European Art Associates, 1100 Madison Avenue. Federal authorities said their investigation began in March when an informant, who would later act as a go-between in Thursday's operation, told them that Ms. Sack had been attempting to sell a painting by Raphael and was prepared to accept payment in drug money or from organized crime figures.
http://www.nytimes.com/

Art dealer served time for fencing stolen works

by J.M. Lawrence
Saturday, June 2, 2001
http://wwww.bostonherald.com/
An elegant blond art dealer charged in Boston this week with money laundering after her drug dealer buyer turned out to be an undercover agent went to prison in the 1970s for fencing stolen art.
Former Brookline art dealer Shirley D. Sack, 73, admitted in 1978 to taking part in a conspiracy to sell stolen art works worth more than $2 million.
Sack and her alleged accomplice, New York gallery owner Arnold K. Katzen, were arrested Thursday at a Boston hotel following a two-month undercover operation by U.S. Customs. The pair allegedly sold paintings by Modigliani and a Degas for $4.1 million to an agent who pretended to be a drug dealer laundering cocaine profits. Investigators do not believe the two paintings - ``Jeune Femme aux Yeux Bleus'' and ``La Coiffure'' - were stolen or fake, sources said. Sack, who was known in 1978 as Shirley Machinist from a previous marriage, served five years at the women's prison in Framingham. U.S. Magistrate Judge Charles P. Swartwood III was not aware of Sack's previous conviction when he released her on $500,000 unsecured bond during a hurried session in federal court, according to sources. Sack, now an arts wholesaler in Manhattan, and Katzen, 62, who ran a diamond trading operation in Antwerp, face maximum sentences of 20 years. Another man, Alan M. Stewart, 65, of Stamford, Conn., also was charged in the case. Sack's previous conviction came after an FBI agent secretly recorded her negotiating to buy stolen paintings, including six art works taken in 1976 from the home of former Harvard president Derek Bok. Sack was allegedly caught on tape again this year by U.S. Customs agents as she brokered the deal and sought reassurance that her buyer was not an FBI agent, according to an agent's affidavit. Sack's attorney, Robert D. Keefe, had no comment yesterday.

Art experts fight to stop da Vinci's Magi 'facelift'

By Catherine Milner, Arts Correspondent
A LONDON-BASED group of art experts is taking legal action to stop Italian curators cleaning one of Leonardo da Vinci's most celebrated masterpieces, The Adoration of the Magi. The Uffizi Gallery in Florence wants to make the painting easier to see and more "readable" to the public. The organisation Artwatch UK, however, has instructed Italian lawyers to take legal action against the gallery, saying that the cleaning will cause "irrevocable" damage to the painting.
In addition, more than 40 distinguished art experts including Sir Ernst Gombrich, the author of The Story of Art, have signed a petition, which will be published this week in the ArtWatch UK magazine, denouncing the Uffizi's plan as "folly". One of the problems of cleaning The Adoration of the Magi is the delicacy of the paintwork which is characterised by thin wash-like sepia tints. The painting was left unfinished by da Vinci in 1482 - and what remains is the monochrome sketch which underlays all his paintings. A magazine interview with the masterpiece's assigned restorer, Alfio Del Serra, alerted the art historical community to the plan to clean it. Critics are particularly concerned by plans to lighten the darker sections of the painting. Many say that this is where its charm lies. Sir Ernst said: "It's ridiculous. I have not the slightest idea why they want it cleaned. These are the first sketches and first ideas that the master put down with his brush, and who is to say which of these lines were really his?" Mr Del Serra said: "The objective of the restoration is simply to recuperate its complete readability, which in some places is completely clouded over." He is concerned with some "dirty, leathery skin formed by pseudo re-varnishings". He said: "In those dark areas of the panel picture, the applications have formed a thick patina and have provoked a brownish tonality which interferes with the reading of the work." Prof James Beck, who is leading the campaign against the scheme, said: "The idea of 'readability' is a highly dangerous operative principle. In the first place is the question of whether an unfinished work like The Adoration of the Magi is 'readable' anyway. Cleaning this picture is like a 70-year-old person having a facelift. In a dark room it might look all right, but it would look pasty in the light. "This rhetoric of 'getting back to the original and making it available to the public' is a myth. The real issue is philosophical. We are used to seeing bright images on television and everywhere else, but do we really want the paintings of the past to be modernised? Are they going to be kept forever young - like everything else?" One of the main problems with cleaning The Adoration is that da Vinci, like many Old Masters, built up the picture in layers of varnish into which dry pigment had been mixed. By cleaning off the varnish, argue members of ArtWatch UK, much of the subtlety and depth of the picture would be lost. Prof Beck said: "This is not a minor matter. Our goal is to have an international debate. We'll readily go to court if the Uffizi goes ahead with the cleaning."
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/

Collectors Beware: It's Hurricane Season Again! --

Timely Advice from AXA Art Insurance On How to Protect Art and Collectibles

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 1, 2001--$5 billion of damages are caused every year by hurricanes, about ten times more than by earthquakes. With the hurricane season officially starting on June 1, AXA Nordstern Art Insurance Corporation, the exclusive provider of art and collectibles insurance services in the United States, is posting a special chapter on its Web site www.axa-art.com, listing a catalogue of steps and measures for collectors to mitigate hurricane damage to their prized possessions.
"Preparing your home and ensuring the personal safety of you and your loved ones are ultimately more important than saving an art object, but a few timely precautions can minimize damage," said Dietrich von Frank, President and CEO of AXA Nordstern Art.
Although meteorologists recently have forecast fewer storms forming over the Atlantic than in the past three years based on an absence of influences such as El Nino or La Nina, there is no reason to let one's guard down. For example, in 1992, Hurricane Andrew, the costliest on record, developed during a season of below-normal hurricane activity.
Hurricane mitigation of art investments, not unlike general property protection, includes doing everything possible to prevent damage, and being prepared to take immediate action if something does get damaged. AXA experts have put together the following checklist: But what do you do once your Rodin bronze is standing ankle-deep in water or your favorite Rosenquist print got scratched? Damage control is a matter of foresight and more often swift, smart action claims AXA Nordstern Art. Putting wet art works on paper into the freezer until professional help arrives is only one of many relevant tips provided by AXA's specialists who strongly recommend to prepare a list of conservators specializing in the respective collection focus (whether works on paper, Asian sculpture or textiles) with telephone numbers.
Yet, the www.axa-art.com Web site does not only focus on securing private art collections in all kinds of weather. In the Collectors World s section of the site, "Caring for your art" features in-depth advice for established and emerging collectors on anything from proper shipping, storing and hanging of paintings to individual chapters on the most popular collectibles such as books, ceramics, furniture or toys.
AXA Nordstern Art Insurance was founded in the United States in 1987 by insurance and art professionals to address a need for providing expert, affordable insurance coverage to the owners of fine art and collectibles. To this day, the company is the only insurance provider in the US to focus exclusively on fine art and collectibles, underwriting many of the country's most prestigious collections. In addition to providing flexible, tailor-made short or long term coverage, the company assists its insureds--individuals, corporations, museums, galleries, trusts and traveling exhibitions--with the overall protection and preservation of their collections.
AXA Nordstern Art Insurance Corporation is part of the global AXA Group, one of the world's largest international insurance and related financial services companies. In the United States, members of the AXA Group include AXA Financial (formerly The Equitable Group) and its companies AXA Advisors, Equitable Life, Alliance Capital and Sanford Bernstein.
CONTACT: AXA Nordstern Art Insurance Corp.
Christiane Fischer, Director, Communications
Tel: 212.415.8427
Fax: 212.415.8420
cfischer@axa-art-usa.com

From: David Shillingford dshillingford@alrny.com
Subject:

Two useful publications on WW.II provenance research

I have come across two very useful publications on World War II provenance research which I think that your readers would find interesting:
The AAM Guide to Provenance Research, by Nancy H. Yeide, Konstantin Akinsha
and Amy L. Walsh.
An authoritative resource for tracing the ownership history of artwork, with particular attention to art and cultural property looted by the Nazis and others during World War II, was published at the annual meeting of the American Association of Museums, held in St. Louis May 6-10. The guide is divided into three parts: Basic Provenance Research and Principles, Holocaust Era Provenance Research, and Appendices. The guide includes information on documentation available at the United States National Archives as well as foreign resources for provenance research. Specific case studies illustrate research methodology. The extensive appendices include bibliographies of collectors, locations of dealer archives, annotated lists of "red-flag" names, and a list of the codes used by Nazis to identify confiscated collections.
The guide is available for $40 to AAM members ($50 nonmembers) and can be purchased on line at www.aam-us.org, or by contacting the AAM bookstore at 202-289-9127 or bookstore@aam-us.org
National Archives and Records Administration Microfilm Project: Art Records Relating to
Holocaust-Era Art Provenance and Claims Research
For the first time, researchers wanting to see reports from the Art Looting Investigation Unit (ALIU) of the Office of Strategic Services will not have to travel to the National Archives at College Park to examine the original paper documents. The National Archives announced that it will release a microfilm publication consisting of reports of art looting and trafficking of looted art by the Nazis in World War II on Tuesday, May 8. The publication entitled, "OSS Art Looting Investigation Unit Reports, 1945-46," consists of detailed interrogation reports, consolidated interrogation reports, and the final report of the ALIU.
The microfilm publication, (M1782), is available for research use in the microfilm research rooms at the National Archives Building on Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC, at the National Archives at College Park, and at the 13 National Archives regional facilities, located in major urban areas nationwide.
The publication may be purchased through the National Archives Customer Service Center in College Park, MD. Credit card orders may be placed by calling 1-800-234-8861 (or 301- 713-6800 in the Washington, DC metropolitan area) or by mailing or faxing (to 301-713- 6169) an order form to the Customer Service Center. Orders paid for by check or money order should be sent to the National Archives Trust Fund in Atlanta, GA.
More information about the Microfilm Project is available at http://www.nara.gov/research/assets/
Regards
David.

From: newsletter@theartnewspaper.com
Subject:

THE ART NEWSPAPER VISITS THE DEALERS OF PESHAWAR, PAKISTAN

The Art Newspaper.com
http://www.theartnewspaper.com

This week's top stories:

THE ART NEWSPAPER VISITS THE DEALERS OF PESHAWAR, PAKISTAN

PESHWAR. It is hard to take the “antiquities” dealers of Peshawar, Pakistan, seriously. At first sight their little shops, clustered by dozens around small courtyards in the maze-like bazaar of the old city, contain little more than valueless bric-a-brac and coarse fakes. http://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/article.asp?idart=6333

THE BRITISH ELECTION: THE TORY AND LABOUR POSITIONS ON CULTURE

LONDON. On the eve of the election, the Conservatives are criticising Labour’s arts policy, arguing that it has “stumbled from fiasco to disaster in the last four years.” According to the Tory manifesto, “this incompetence has been accompanied by a disdain for British traditions and a modish contempt for our heritage. Labour even promoted a bogus new culture—“Cool Britannia”—in an attempt to supplant the culture and identity which has shaped us.” http://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/article.asp?idart=6332

SEVEN-ACRE GREEN SITE TO BE DEVELOPED INTO A NEW MEMORIAL IN WASHINGTON’S MALL

WASHINGTON. The US Congress has approved a plan for the conversion of the area between the Washington Column and the Lincoln Memorial into a plaza with granite columns, to commemorate the US servicemen and women who fought in World War II. The controversy over the $160 million project began with the choosing of the site in 1995 and ended with a voice vote taken by the House of Representatives on 21 May. http://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/article.asp?idart=6331

TATE ANNOUNCES TURNER PRIZE SHORTLIST

LONDON. The exhibition does not open until 7 November, but the bookmakers have calculated the odds already. The Tate announced the shortlist for the 2001 Turner prize on 30 May: Richard Billingham, Martin Creed, Isaac Julien and Mike Nelson. http://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/article.asp?idart=6330

THE NATIONAL PAVILIONS AT THE VENICE BIENNALE

VENICE. What's on where from 10 June to 4 November. http://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/article.asp?idart=6310

ELSEWHERE IN THE BIENNALE

VENICE. To reinforce this Biennale’s universality (which is certainly not “global” in the economic sense of the word—in fact it is anti-global in many respects) is the section named “Platform for thought” located in the place of honour inside the Italian Pavilion. The Art Newspaper also makes a selection of exhibitions outside national pavilions in Venice this year. http://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/article.asp?idart=6290

FIRST PICTURE FROM THE MIGHTY GOUDSTIKKER COLLECTION IS RETURNED TO HEIR

NEW YORK. Another painting looted by the Nazis has found its way back to its rightful owner. Marei von Saher, the sole heir of the Jacques Goudstikker collection, has received the “Temptation of St Anthony” by J.W. de Cock from the estate of Hertha Katz. http://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/article.asp?idart=6274

ITALIAN LOTTERY CASH FOR CULTURE

ROME. Before leaving office, Giovanna Melandri, the out-going Italian Minister of Culture, announced the allocations of money from the Italian State lottery for the next three years. http://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/article.asp?idart=6273

SWEDEN “FINDS” VASARI’S DRAWINGS

STOCKHOLM. Stockholm’s Nationalmuseum has now proved that it holds the third largest group of drawings once owned by Giorgio Vasari, after those in the Uffizi and the Louvre. http://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/article.asp?idart=6272

PADUA, ITALY: A NEW BRONZE AGE

LONDON. Small Renaissance bronzes and bronze statuettes were highly prized and sought by museums and collectors at the beginning of the 20th century, but underwent an eclipse for many decades. The exhibition “Donatello and his era: the small bronze in Padua in the 15th and 16th centuries” at the Musei Civici in Padua (until 15 July) marks another stage in the renewal of interest in small bronzes. http://www.theartnewspaper.com/news/article.asp?idart=6271
---------------
Anna Somers Cocks, Editor
contact@theartnewspaper.com
The Art Newspaper
70 South Lambeth Road London SW8 1RL UK
tel +44(0)207 735 3331 fax +44(0)207 735 3332
http://www.theartnewspaper.com