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PEOPLE & ARTS Saturday 16 March 2019
Recovered de Kooning painting back in the spotlight

PHOENIX (AP) — More than agency could not com-
30 years after it was brazen- ment.
ly stolen from an Arizona Because of the investiga-
museum, a painting by Wil- tion, it was not until last
lem de Kooning reportedly November that the FBI fully
worth $100 million is go- released the painting back
ing back in the public eye to the museum, curator Ol-
where it all began. ivia Miller said.
The University of Arizona "We had it here but we
Museum of Art in Tucson is weren't allowed to move it
throwing a fundraiser and or display it or do anything
homecoming party of sorts like that," Miller said.
for "Woman-Ochre" on Sun- She said museum staffers
day before it gets whisked have been overwhelmed
away for months of resto- "in a good way" with the
ration work. For some who anticipation of the paint-
worked at the museum ing being on view again —
when the painting was sto- even if just for a day. And of
len in 1985, the celebration course, there will be plenty
still seems surreal. of safeguards around the
Lee Karpiscak, who was painting.
the curator of collections "Our security is much dif-
at the time, recalls the ferent than it was 1985,"
entire staff feeling devas- Miller said. "Certainly at
tated. "We tried to be real- This August 2017 photo shows "Woman-Ochre," a painting by Willem de Kooning, being read- this event, we will definitely
ied for examination by University of Arizona Museum of Art staff Nathan Saxton, left, and Kristen
istic about it," she said. "All Schmidt in Tucson, Ariz. have extra eyes."
these scenarios go through Associated Press The oil painting, which was
your head and make you donated to the museum
crazy. We certainly hoped antiques dealer in Silver fect match. giving Day 1985 in Tucson. in 1958, is one in an iconic
it would be returned." City, New Mexico, bought The furniture dealer had Jerry Alter died in 2012 and series by the Dutch-Amer-
It was the morning after the painting at an estate gotten the painting from his wife in 2017. Authorities ican artist that explores
Thanksgiving when au- sale. When researching the estate of Jerry and Rita have never publicly called the figure of a woman. The
thorities said a man and a the piece, he discovered Alter. The art work had been them suspects. piece features the abstract
woman showed up at the an article about the theft. hanging in their Cliff, New Jill McCabe, a spokes- expressionist's signature
museum. A security guard He notified the museum. A Mexico, home. Relatives woman for the FBI in Phoe- broad paint strokes, depict-
and students working the conservator with the uni- also discovered a photo of nix, said an investigation ing various colors across
front desk were the only versity found it to be a per- the couple taken Thanks- remains ongoing so the the female body.q
ones there, according to
Karpiscak. Police said the
woman distracted the
guard with small-talk while
the man cut the painting
right out of the frame, leav-
ing edges of the canvas still
attached. The entire heist
lasted around 15 minutes.
"How do you eat your
Thanksgiving dinner know-
ing you're going to steal
a painting the next day?"
Karpiscak said.
There was no security cam-
era system set up then. The
next few days were a flurry
of activity as FBI agents in-
terviewed the entire staff.
But no significant leads de-
veloped. Occasionally the
museum would get calls
from people claiming to
know where the painting
was.
But Karpiscak said they
were callers looking to get
back at someone they
didn't like. On the theft's
30th anniversary, the mu-
seum displayed the empty
frame at a news confer-
ence in hopes of generat-
ing tips.
Then in 2017, a furniture and