Queensland Art Gallery Presscuttings Book 3 : Presscuttings, Sept 1959 - Sept 1967

SUNDAY TRUTH, JUNE 11, 1967 -. - "MORNING HERALD" Sydnev N SW : 1157i ,, •• Crank has missing Picasso? News 'may ruin Picasso probe' $200,000 PICASSO WORK MYSTERY telephone calls have been made to Mrs. Julie Rubin, the widow of Major Harold de Vahl Rubin, who donated the Picasso painting "stolen" from the Queens– land Art Gallery last week. Mrs. Rubin's maid takr n hy a cra nk or, answered a call which as Mrs. Rubin ~us– claimed that the peels, a n "art lover." pa i. •' Ing - Ln Belle Thell 01 the paintlu; Ho I I and al s e- wa; -.,r " h:1lf-nude Uutch · wormrn \'alucd on the ;ll'l n111rlwl :11 S~II0,01111- ha'- s1•nketl on one or (tm•1•11slancl's hlJ:·ge,-L 11 o Ii,. I! hn•eslls:alioni., wllh sl, detective• a•– !llgnrd to the uase. Mrs. nuhln talked to Sunduy T ruth yesterday 11nd told how u1,sct she wns thnt her law hus– hnnd's "favorlte piece or urL'' WllS missing. She said ; "I am reluct– ant · over the 11ubllclly nbout this and I reully don't wont to talk about It too much. "But now you've con– tncled me I must say t ha t ll Is a drt•ndful bustness. "The ~bjor loved thal palnlln1, II wa, one or five from the valuable - - ---4!• Rubin colleellon that he 1an to the art lover, or Queensland. Rumors "I've had mixed thoughts about It all, that maybe a criminal stoic It to sell for whatever he could get, but now I'm more In• cll11ed lo belie\'e thnt It was the work or a crank." ~lr9, Hubin .ald that 1he l\'as almost Ylncd that "whoever •lole the p11lnlln1 did so berau"" or rumon that the ,\rl Gallery was l(O• ln1 lo oell It to raloe fund•." "Tiic person who called when I wos out said that maybe the painting was a forgery. "TI1is Is absolute rubbish. Major Rubln paid $12,000 ror her tLa Belle Hollan– dnlsel In London about the lime or the war and It was his prize plece." Mrs. Rubin told how a photographed copy or La Belle Hollandalse had been made. and had been hung In the upstalr., section or the ga llery. U:•~ (1, ,.', ,6."> 11 Foolish protest Ir, R/11 Is cr11r.rnll.v NUP– no,cd. the thrft of L·t Rr lle llnll:1111lnlse fro,.;.. tlw Q11ernsla11d Art Gal– len · wns lnsplrr.d h,• f1•11rs llual the nalnlln~ mlehl hr. snlcl. tt was an ii!J~"~a~:i~~~h· trresnon~- It . wnsn'l r\'rn nn ortal11nl iclcn Much Ihr snme th lna Juul bt'Cll clone comnnrnl– ll'eiv rcrcntlv tn Britain ~'S~!i. much more orovoc-' F 11rt,!1er. I he chn.lrrnnJi or the 11nllcr)''s trnstces h ad nl thr 1.lmr of t-lir thc[I ~tron~h· clcnirci ,.i1r po :-.- ~1~;11i,i' i,/~~i'rl. the picture And II the thel l \\'O.S pcrpet– rntf"cl t.o clrnw ol,tcnt.lon to wl,n L mnnr people t,hlnk 1s nn 11nlrnrm.Y stnt,c or nffrdrs nt I.he 1:wllerv. it \,·n.~ not on I r nn cX 1.rn – orctmarlly cxtrf'mc wav or seeking 11ublielty, but nlso mrnecccsnry. That subiert h ns surely been wlrlrly rnn\·ns~rcl In rcrrnt wr r kS lf 1,h<' L!1icvcs i nnrl wlrn tc,·Cr t,l,rlr mol In~ the~• n-1·c no beli er lhnn 1h01) know n11yt hl11c or n,r f. t,he.v must 1w sin~~ 1rly Irrespon sible to hO\'(" 1. \.:en such n work from I lir ramnnr:,t I \'(" :mrctr or ,11.. ~nllcry uncl r :i,,:po~rrt II lo tl1r rtn ncers ~fv. lrnnclJln~ nnd ll11mld - T hc prn nk "'rnl. too f. r Let's iHll'C U,c plct11rc bnrk Jlrfl1'e. riulrk ~mnrt Relc-asc ot further information about the recovery of the painting, Lo _Belle Hollandaise co!-'ld rui!' police investigotion of its d1soppeoronce, the Acting Pohce Com• missioner, Mr, Palethorpe, said today. He said police inquiries were continuing. Any further news I J)AMAGED would depend on developm~ts. , _ _ _ The CIB chief. 1 11 , peo- cldc whether the theIt hnd Au~ust session of Parlla– tnr \\'. 11. ua1e1,., 1od11,· been nn art robbery or o. rne nt. I ~-lll ask que&Uons ' BRISBANE. Tucsdav - Th_e 5200.000 Pi~as;~ pa in11ng, La Belle Hol– lnnJaisc, has been damaged. conferred with top dctcc- mlschel'ious act. \"'bout It. t1vcs on the c ,i.sc . Delee- "I lnellned nil along 10 The Ar~ Oallery IR ln tlvc St,nlur Strreant J. the latter theory, but I do 1 Mr. Manns electorate. l\lcSpua·ran und llet••tl•• not have enou~h cvldcncc S•r~eant M. G. Chaim•••· yet to say so definitely," h The ~200.000 Pirasso. 1 said. stolen from the Queens- Questions may be aske land Art d\llrrv on the in State Parliament I nl11ht of June 5, was selzed \Auc1tst about t,he recover by police In a raid on n of La Belle Hollandaise. h·ouse In a Brisbane M b I d suburb )'estcrdnY, I ay • ra se Al 1.30 p.m. today the ·n Parliament palntlnr was handed I' - back to tht chairman nf The Australian Labor tl'Ulllee• of th• rallerv. Pnrty member ror Brls- Slr Leon Trout. bV In• bane Mr. J . II. Mann, said ,pec,tor Raetz. al polle• todav the public should be headquarten. told the run ro.cts sur- Pollce were ulven a re- rounding the recoverv of celpt, empowerlnu t.hem to the uainllng take over the ual11t1 11 uj "It seems stranRe that attaln. In the el'ent or ,ts the police will not ~lve any being reQuired ns nn ex- 1nrormallon about the re– hlblt In anv future court covery, or who stole It," proceedlnus he said To be checked be~~t ~\~• by art expert An art expert will check the pointing £or d1unagc. The rnld which re– covcrccl thr pnint.mg was ornanlsed by Inspector R netz nftcr having re– ceived confld ut'al ln[or– mnlton He swore out n scnrch 'warrnnt I The · · , prtin11ng was rc- ;no,ed from the Qucens– ;'n.d Art Gallery on June 1 1 !" 11 w;1~ recovered by 1'1° 1cc }C5lcrd:-,r. The damage consist, of al 5lt~ht smud,:?e on one ~.10uld~~ of the nude nman in lhc l'ainr ing. _An e~perl said todo1y 1~15 \\nuld dc1n11.:1 frn m t C' value nf the Picat'iso. Chief of the Rrishane C.l.ll. lnspcc1or w R~ctz hanrlcd the paintinµ ~her lo lhc chuirm an of T c Gallery, Sir Leon rout, rocla}', The ra intinl,! w;ts re– covrrrd frorn a Brishane suburhan home yesterday after confidential advice was received hy Jn,pect , Raetz. tl is understood pollce hn,ic not rclensed the ad– dress where the painting wns seized as they do not wish to embarrass Inno- cent people. I Mr. Palethorpc said to• day he did not have enough lnformatlon e- ) What price· art Gallery sale? • Ill SIR Leon Trout has stated that the Truttees hove the right to sell any of the paintings in the Stote Art Gallery. He has now admitted having out It lo the Trustees Viiat thev m .gh t hav~ lo consider tl1c pos– siblllty or sellinA some of the rnaJor works an t11c 0 nllery In orde r to rolse rund, for building. He hns implied t,hut there Is no palntlnR that he would not sell, If t,he monev or– rered and the need ·or lt were great enough. Sir Leon a1,penrs not to know thnt the popularity of a onintlng, Its mnrkct p'rtce. nnd lls ,•alue ns a work or nrl. are three differen t tllinl(S. Market prices arc t,he sperln? concern of !,hose who trade In oalnt 'ngs, but R JudAment of ,·nlue re– Quires 41:0meonr wlt,h tra in– In~ 11ncl senstblllt v. The training: or' ~ut:h an expert Is nornrn llv 1>rncticnl ns well as theoreticnl. Without the nd\'lce or n man with trnlnlng nnd qunllficatlons In the Fln e Arls, the Trustees could not posslblv run the Oallcrv tn n business-like wnv · Goon pnln1inAs · · would net be bouuh t until t h e cc1,ernl rcroguiilon o! their \',tluc had m1111e t hem cx– p!!ns~rc pnlr:tin~s. And t~ sr)! lnr; wit.hou t, ex • pen . . 1d\'lre the Dosll Ion of the rrustces would he c\'cn morn lllt!-vtmc1 ror there jc nn lnlr JrkL for a nnl11 tln ~ tlrn l c :, n 11l'\'er he rrolncr'rf Sir Leon snvs thnt he wnnts n Direct.Or who can restore pnlnl\ngs. It would • TO THE EDITOR lle excellent if he could at– tract a trained nnd qunlllled conservator, for there Is no such mnn In Brisbane at present, BuL what Str Leon needs Is n Director who can tell ~~~ '~ri~u~: ~ 0 r,nlntlng ts a The pre,ent depleted body of trustees would ha\'e LO look LO a Dlrector ror such expert nd\'tce, for none or them is trntned or qualified In t,he Fine Arts. It has been reported tC-M 7 / fi /67.1 that when "I.a Belle Hollandaise·· was stolen. a door into the Onllcry \\'US not. councctcd to n burg)l\r nlRrm. As one who drew a llcntt"n to the vnlue ot this pnmting, 1 would agree L!mt 11 Is possible lirnt tins publicity may hnve prom11t– ed the the[l, although I do n ot know how ll~ci)' this Is. Oq;anlslng sccuntv Is n parL of the ndmlnlslratlon of the Gallery, and according lo Sir Leon. this adminls– tra tlun Is the responslbllity of the Doard or Trnstees cir wh ich he Is Lhe chnlrninn. - C. F. Pr.-lc!', Douglas Stred, Corlnala, · • Confidence "A WORK of nrt is grent in propor– lion lo its power of stir– rln~ the l1ichr~t emotion~ or the i:,.rcntcst number of lhou~htf11l prople for 1he lonccs1 pcrlocl of time." T he gcnrrn1 public hnvc nol been stlrrr~ hv dlspln\'s nt our Art Gnllcrv ovCr 1lll" lnsl fr w vrnr~. . ~fr!\. M. ChtlrJ.. mirrors thr opinion of n number of proplc who " lr fl sl1nrllv. llr\'Cr to f't\\ lll'l\" 1C.-i\L J11nr Ri. A new rN?lm<' . 11nclrr Ihr ct1rcr1orship nf .J. \Vlr11eke. wn11lcl ~onu rc~tnrr p11hlic conflrlrncP nnrl monrv 11111v \Jrcnmr. more rcnclllv nvnil– nblr ror thnt t1PW anllcl'\' -"Annthrr ho11cr11I." Rrll– nic A,·rnue, finythornc.