Steven Speilberg recently found out that a Norman Rockwell painting he owned was actually on the FBI Art Crime Team's wanted list. The painting, "Russian Schoolroom" was stolen during a late night burglary in Clayton, Missouri on June 25, 1973. It was put up for auction in New Orleans in October 1988 and then was sold to Spielberg in 1989 during a Norman Rockwell Exhibit in New York.
While scanning the FBI's wanted art list recently, Spielberg's staff saw their boss' painting and alerted the authorities.
Rockwell isn't the only victim of sticky fingers. In late February, two Picasso paintings worth a total of $66 million, were stolen from the Paris home of the artist's granddaughter.
According to the New York Times, London’s Art Loss Register lists 444 missing Picassos in its database, including paintings, lithographs, drawings and ceramics. There's also an active industry making and selling fake Picassos.
Which brings me to my last piece of illegal activities in the art world. The Globe and Mail recently did a piece about China's counterfeit art market. They focus in on China Oil Painting Wholesale, which sells replications of western art and will reproduce any image you'd like. When confronted by the reporter, the company's rep said
According to the article, counterfeit art has become so popular that a single town in the country's south churned out $120-million of artwork last year.
I don't know what's worse. Being a starving artist or being so popular people nab and fake your work.
