Vermeer: Stolen

One of my Christmas gifts was the recent book The Woman who Stole Vermeer.  You may know how much I enjoy stories of art heists!  This book tells the story of the woman who orchestrated the theft of Vermeer's "Lady Writing a Letter with her Maid"--incidentally, one of my favorite Vermeer paintings.

 

The mastermind behind the theft was Rose Dugdale.  Rose was raised in high-society Britain, in a  wealthy and respected family.  As a young woman, she developed a strong revolutionary bent, renounced her family, and became a left wing Irish Republican Army militant. Unafraid of using violence, Rose participated in demonstrations and bombings.

Eventually, Rose organized and directed the Vermeer theft. Armed with pistols, Rose and three accomplices entered Russborough House (a private mansion near Dublin, Ireland) on April 27, 1974, and bound and gagged its owners and their staff. Rose then perused the owners' art collection and took the best pieces, nineteen in all, worth about $100 Million in today's money. What was the motive?  Pure and simple, Rose wanted the paintings as bargaining tools to aid IRA prisoners.  After the theft, she sent a ransom letter demanding the release of two infamous IRA prisoners (the Price sisters) in exchange for the return of the Vermeer and two other stolen paintings.

Empty frames left behind

Fortunately for the art world, the Vermeer and other paintings were recovered just eight days after the theft.  Police conducted door-to-door canvassing in the neighborhood, and one neighbor's tip led them to Rose. The Vermeer was found in the trunk of her car, virtually undamaged. It can now be seen in the National Gallery of Ireland. Rose was tried for its theft, pled guilty, and was sentenced to nine years in prison.  Upon her release, she went back to work for the IRA. 

The author of the recent book is Anthony Amore.  He is the Director of Security at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston--which had its own Vermeer stolen in 1990. No wonder Amore has become such an expert on Rose Dugdale.  You can't help but wonder if he suspects that she or her compatriots could have been behind the Boston theft as well. That painting has never been recovered, so the mystery remains unsolved--perhaps the subject of a future post!

Red All Over

"Dr. Pozzi at Home"

79.4 x 40.2 inches, Oil on Canvas

John Singer Sargent, 1881

I've been thinking a lot about RED. Maybe it's because I just finished reading Julian Barnes' new book, The Man in the Red Coat.  The book is an amazing and entertaining romp through Belle Epoque Paris with Dr. Samuel Pozzi, the subject of the top photo.  The painting of Dr. Pozzi by John Singer Sargent is huge (larger than life-size) and powerful. I have actually seen it in person. If ever there was a painting that called for the word "scarlet", this is it.

"Robert Louis Stevenson and his Wife"

20 1/2 x 24 1/2, Oil on Canvas

John Singer Sargent, 1885

In the world of painting, the color red is a "dark".  That is, at its most intense, it does not reflect much light.  This feature can make red pigments difficult to use successfully.  I am intrigued by paintings that are "red all over"--working with very subtle variations in hue to achieve their purposes. Sargent was a master of this, as was Anders Zorn (see below).

"Mrs. Howe"

Anders Zorn, 

It's one thing to paint a portrait when the subject is clothed in red.  'Tis a horse of a different color to take a more neutral scene and amp up the heat by couching it all in red.  The interior pictured below by Connie Hayes does just that.  And beautifully. 

"Light Witness"

20 x 20, Oil on Canvas

(c) Connie Hayes

And while we're at it, I can't overlook those red flowers by Nicolas de Staël.  Hot!  Hope you'll enjoy this exploration of the reds to warm you up on a winter's day!

"Fleurs Rouges"

Nicolas de Staël

Warmth of Home

 

Drawing (c) Lesley Powell 2019

A cold snap has arrived, and with it my thoughts have turned to cozy interior spaces.  Early nightfall and a chill in the air definitely draw my attention inward. 

I've been revisiting some of my favorite paintings of interior spaces.  I do love to paint interiors--but unfortunately I end up throwing away as many interior paintings as I keep.  I fall too easily into the trap of making them look like stiff renderings of furniture!  Much harder to make them tell the story of how the light illuminates the room.  Therein lies the challenge...

"Ground Floor Entry"

14 x 11, Oil on Board

(c) Lesley Powell 2019

SOLD

It helps when I can take the time to draw the space while I am sitting in it.  With a drawing in hand, I can move on to the canvas, and sometimes not even look at a reference photo.  Working from the drawing alone allows me to be more free in my interpretation, and to avoid the distraction of extraneous objects.

"Sheltering"

Oil on Linen

(c) Lesley Powell 2020

 

My quest to simplify the interior continues.  I recently read that "The best way to stay afloat is to throw things overboard."  So I am "throwing overboard" all the unnecessary clutter, and focusing on how the light and dark shapes tell the story of the room.  Stay tuned!