Categories: Arts & Culture

Stolen Henri Matisse’s Le Jardin found in London after 26 years

Le Jardin, a Henri Matisse painting stolen in 1987 and valued at $1 million, has been found by an art recovery specialist in London.

Le Jardin (The Garden) was taken from the Museum of Modern Art in Stockholm during a robbery in the early hours of May 11, 1987.

According to reports at the time, attempts were made to sell it back to the museum for exorbitant sums.

The artwork is to be returned to the Swedish museum in the coming weeks.

The Art Loss Register, (ALR) a database of stolen, missing and looted artwork has been searching the market for the painting for the last 22 years.

A few weeks ago there was a search against its database from a fine art dealer in Essex, Charles Roberts.

He was carrying out due diligence, serving to confirm all material facts in regards to the sale, before handling the Matisse.

Once the match was confirmed, the recovery was handed to ALR director Christopher Marinello, who successfully negotiated the return of the painting.

“Art historians are invaluable on art recovery cases,” said Christopher Marinello.

“The ALR would not have been able to match and recover this painting without the steadfast dedication of ALR staff members, Malavika Baishya, Olivia Tate, and Pauline Geskes.”

Le Jardin, a Henri Matisse painting stolen in 1987 and valued at $1 million, has been found by an art recovery specialist in London

Over the past seven years, Christopher Marinello, who is also a lawyer has been responsible for recovering or negotiating settlements in cases involving more than $245 million in stolen and looted artwork.

He said that Lars Nittive, the director of Stockholm’s Museum of Modern Art in 1987, was absolutely correct when he told reporters that the painting was too well known to sell on the open market.

“I commend the museum for not giving in to ransom demands a quarter century ago. Stolen artwork has no real value in the legitimate marketplace and will eventually resurface… it’s just a matter of waiting it out.”

Museum officials congratulated the ALR on the recovery of the work, which is expected to be returned to the museum through the Swedish Ministry of Culture in the coming weeks.

Sonia Pantiss

Sonia is the heart and the artist of the team. She loves art and all that it implies. As Sonia says, good music, a well directed movie, or attending a music or film festival melts people’s heart and make them better. She is great at painting and photography. Working on scrapbooks is her favorite activity.

Share
Published by
Sonia Pantiss

Recent Posts

Quincy Jones Dead at 91

Quincy Jones, the celebrated musician and producer who worked with Michael Jackson, Frank Sinatra, Ray…

7 hours ago

White House 2024: Voter Fraud Claims Flood Social Media

Misleading allegations, rumours and outright lies about voting and fraud are flooding online spaces in…

2 days ago

Spain: At Least 158 Killed In The Country’s Worst Flooding Disaster

At least 158 people have died in Spain's worst flooding disaster in generations. On October…

4 days ago

Russia Fines Google $20,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000, Surpassing Global GDP

Google has been fined two undecillion (a two followed by 36 zeroes) roubles by a…

4 days ago

Financing Your Home Remodel: 7 Tips for Success

Embarking on a home remodel is an exciting journey, promising enhanced comfort, increased property value,…

2 weeks ago

Donald Trump Serves Up McDonald’s Fries While Kamala Harris Celebrates 60th Birthday with Church Choir

The US presidential candidates continued to campaign across key swing states on October 20. Footage…

2 weeks ago