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- DNA of thief left on a protective painting cover helped investigators identify a prime suspect in the theft of two Auguste Renoir paintings.
- Johnny Depp’s London exhibition opens at the Halcyon Gallery, who now also represents him.
- Morocco has opened the first publicly funded museum dedicated to over 2,500 years of local Jewish history in the town of Fes.
The Headlines
CRACKED CASE. The DNA of a 29-year-old left on a protective painting cover helped investigators identify a prime suspect in the September 8 theft of two Pierre-Auguste Renoir paintings from the artist’s former home-turned-museum in southern France, reports Le Figaro. That person eventually led investigators to a second suspect and to the admission that the paintings were hidden behind a wall in another accomplice’s home. Three out of four suspects were already known to police for other crimes. The two stolen paintings were recovered in record time, but one, “Portrait of Madame Colonna Romano,” was torn and needs restoration, Marseille prosecutor Nicolas Bessone told reporters. He estimated both recovered works are worth about $4.7 million. Investigators also discovered that one of the first suspects, age 29, recently visited the Maeght Foundation in Saint-Paul-de-Vence with the alleged intention of planning another burglary at the modern and contemporary art institution. The giveaway? As detectives followed his trail, the suspect met with a fourth person known to authorities for art theft and forgery. Police soon swooped in, given the “very strong suspicion that another heist was imminent,” said Bessone. The two men suspected of nabbing the Renoir paintings have been charged with “theft committed by an organized gang,” but insist they are innocent. The third suspect admitted to receiving and hiding the two Renoirs.
REPRESENTING DEPP. Johnny Depp is taking his art career seriously and it seems so is the London-based Halcyon Gallery, who now represent the actor alongside names such as Bob Dylan, Dominic Haris and Ernesto Cánovas, reported Arts & Collection. On Sunday, the gallery teased New Bond Street with a larger-than-life facade featuring Depp’s art, which is on display from today through to November 15. “Johnny Depp is a defining cultural icon with a unique artistic vision. Known for his unparalleled ability to connect with audiences through the authenticity of his characters, an encounter with Depp, the artist, is equally compelling,” said Paul Green, president and founder of Halcyon. “Depp has drawn and painted his whole life and we’re very proud at Halcyon to be hosting his first major exhibition in the UK.”
The Digest
Morocco has opened a publicly funded museum dedicated to over 2,500 years of local Jewish history in the town of Fes, marking the first of its kind in an Arab-Muslim country. [Le Figaro]
The Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pools are finally being refilled with water, after President Trump’s rushed renovation left the newly painted pool floor peeling off in large chunks, which the administration continues to allege was caused by vandals. [The Washington Post]
The University of Amsterdam’s museum has returned a third-century BC vase to Sicily, nine years after Italy requested its restitution, and due to its “problematic” provenance. [The Art Newspaper]
Influential Berlin art dealer Matthias Arndt has opened an “art salon” in Athens, and says the city reminds him of Berlin in the 1990s for its “spirit of optimism” and creative output. [Die Welt]
As his sound installation titled 66 76 26 opens at the Guggenheim Bilbao, Steve McQueen tells reporters, “We live in an era where we talk about AI, we talk about the fear factor—because there is a lot of fear around us right now, with the rise of fascism in the West—and for me, what’s interesting at this moment is the idea of love… it becomes fundamental.” [El Pais]
The Kicker
WHERE WERE THE WOMEN? Artist Prune Nourry is bringing back forgotten women sculptors in art history, through her forthcoming show, Visionaries, at the Petit Palais museum in Paris, on view October 20 to January 24, she told the Financial Times. “I was invited to the Petit Palais museum in Paris about two years ago, and walking through its galleries I realized that most of the sculptures represented women—often as muses or models—but only 4 percent of the artworks were created by women,” Nourry said. This led her to research little-known women sculptors from the 19th and early 20th centuries, who worked at a time when French art schools were barred to women. Then, Nourry sculpted their portraits using her free interpretations. In over a year and a half, she made 18 busts of women. This is then put in dialogue with Nourry’s other artworks around the theme of women as mythological beings. The show “is about learning to look in a direction where art history hasn’t looked enough, and also to see through the eyes of those women at that time—to reflect on today, and realize how much we owe them,” she said.