Paysage Bords de Seine [1] (On the Shore of the Seine[2] or Landscape on the Banks of the Seine[1]) is an 1879 oil painting by Pierre-Auguste Renoir. It was stolen in 1951 from the Baltimore Museum of Art and resurfaced in 2012.
Paysage Bords de Seine | |
---|---|
English: On the Shore of the Seine, English: Landscape on the Banks of the Seine | |
Artist | Pierre-Auguste Renoir |
Year | 1879 |
Type | Oil on linen |
Subject | Landscape of the Seine |
Dimensions | 14 cm × 23 cm (5.5 in × 9 in) |
Owner | Baltimore Museum of Art |
History
editPaysage Bords de Seine was painted by Renoir in 1879. In June 1925, the painting was purchased by the Paris art gallery Bernheim-Jeune from a "Madame Papillon" (possibly Alphonsine Fournaise Papillon, a figure in the artist's Luncheon of the Boating Party).[1] In January 1926, Herbert L. May purchased the painting from Bernheim-Jeune. In 1937, May's ex-wife, Saidie May, loaned the painting to the Baltimore Museum of Art.[2] In her will, Saidie May bequeathed the painting, along with all her other artworks, to the Baltimore Museum of Art. She died on 28 May 1951.[3]
Theft and rediscovery
editSometime between the evening of 16 November 1951, and a little after noon on 17 November, Paysage Bords de Seine was stolen from the Baltimore Museum of Art during the "From Ingres to Gauguin" show.[4] The museum sold the title of the painting in an insurance claim of $2,500 to Fireman's Fund Insurance Company, which paid the museum for the loss.[2][5] In July 2012, Marcia Fuqua brought the painting to The Potomack Company auction house in Alexandria, Virginia, to sell.[2][6] Fuqua claimed that she bought the painting at a flea market in West Virginia for $7 in late 2009, however a family member said the painting had been in the family for "50 or 60 years" (he later changed his account)[6] and other witnesses claimed to have seen the painting in the family's possession decades before the attempted sale.[7][8] The Potomack Company cancelled the auction scheduled for 29 September 2012, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation seized the painting and opened an investigation into the theft.[6] In November 2013, the Fireman's Fund Insurance Company transferred the title of the painting from the insurance claim back to the Baltimore Museum of Art.[4]
On 10 January 2014, U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema ruled that the painting rightfully belongs to the Baltimore Museum of Art.[9] The FBI returned the painting to the museum on 31 January 2014.[10]
Return to Baltimore Museum of Art
editShortly after regaining possession of the painting, the Baltimore Museum of Art put the artwork on display in an exhibition titled "The Renoir Returns" running from 30 March through 20 July 2014.[11]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Jump up to: a b c Shapira, Ian (11 September 2012). "Renoir found at W.Va. flea market likely to fetch $100,000 at auction". Washington Post. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d Shapira, Ian (27 September 2012). "Flea-market Renoir allegedly was stolen from Baltimore museum; auction canceled". Washington Post. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
- ^ McCauley, Mary Carole (15 February 2014). "A First Look at Stolen Renoir Reveals, Retains Some Secrets". Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 27 March 2014.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Baltimore Museum of Art asks judge to dismiss woman's claims to Renoir painting
- ^ Title to Renoir painting stolen in 1951 awarded to Baltimore Museum of Art
- ^ Jump up to: a b c Shapira, Ian (4 April 2013). "'Renoir Girl' unmasked as Loudoun County's Marcia 'Martha' Fuqua". Washington Post. Retrieved 22 April 2013.
- ^ Shapira, Ian (4 May 2013). "Witnesses say flea-market Renoir was seen in family's home decades ago". Washington Post. Retrieved 6 May 2013.
- ^ Shapira, Ian (5 December 2013). "'Renoir Girl' may have been trying to sell stolen landscape painting on the sly". Washington Post. Retrieved 6 December 2013.
- ^ Shapira, Ian (10 January 2014). "'Flea market' Renoir ordered back to Baltimore Museum of Art by federal judge". Washington Post. Retrieved 10 January 2014.
- ^ McCauley, Mary Carole (31 January 2014). "After 62 Years, Renoir Landscape Returns Home to BMA". Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 4 February 2014.
- ^ "Upcoming Exhibitions". Baltimore Museum of Art. Retrieved 27 March 2014.
Further reading
edit- Baltimore Museum of Art. "On the Shore of the Seine". Archived from the original on 9 August 2016. Retrieved 15 June 2016.
- Baltimore Museum of Art. "Renoir's On the Shore of the Seine returns to the BMA in special exhibition celebrating collector Saidie May" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 June 2016. Retrieved 15 June 2016.
- Shapira, Ian (15 November 2012). "Flea-market Renoir reignites tensions between museum and art donor's descendants". Washington Post.
- Shapira, Ian (13 April 2013). "Flea market Renoir was first offered to different auction house with different story, employee says". Washington Post.
- Shapira, Ian (28 November 2013). "Flea-market Renoir legal battle tears two siblings apart". Washington Post.