Art Theft Austin: 8 Picasso's, Toulouse-Lautrec, Klee, & Calder

The Austin American-Statesman reported that twelve works of art including eight Picasso's, a Toulouse-Lautrec, a Klee, and a Calder were stolen from a former gallery owner's West Lake Hills, TX home on June 23. Initially, the victim reported only the theft of a Picasso (a black and white circus scene from the artist's 347 Series pictured at right, worth between $15,000-$20,000), but this week she noticed that eleven other pieces were missing. According to the Statesman, a number works of art were on loan to her from galleries and dealers from New York and Los Angeles for a show at her home. Surprisingly, none of the art was insured. I would not expect such naiveté from a former gallery owner or her associates. Additionally, how has it taken two weeks for her to realize her colleagues' art is missing in action? One might presume if she were including the loaned works in a show at her private residence, then she (and her colleagues) would have been all the more eager to confirm whether or not they had been among the works stolen.