ART THEFT MYSTERY: need help to solve; info, suggestions, etc.

Hello dear Farming friends. It is with sadness that I ask for your help to solve a mystery, please.

A treasured oil painting that I had done of 'The Cat in the Hat, by Dr. Seuss' has been very skillfully stolen. It was a large painting in a $300++ custom ornate silver frame. (They took the painting - and left the frame with a copy in it!!) It was to be offered on loan to the Dr. Seuss Museum in Springfield, MA., at a later date (when I could bear to part with it for a while, as my daughter had 'helped' paint the snow on the lower right when she was 5 yrs. old. This made it precious to me, and I am heart broken at its loss.)

It appears that they somehow duplicated the original, most likely photographed it, then came back later and took the original and left the copy in the frame, hoping I wouldn't notice.

But of course I did - they did the signature wrong!! And when I had the police remove the back for me (fingerprints) to see if what I had written on the back was still there - it was NOT there.

**The copy that they did - I suspect they photographed it, then printed it somehow to look like an actual painting, came back at a later date and substituted it to look like nothing was missing.
I'd really appreciate information on how this could be done.**

But there are always 'tells', and in this case they did my daughter's name wrong. I had painted hers first as she couldn't write yet, then mine, in different colors with different sized brushes....but only hers actually showed when it was framed.
Now they both show.

As for the writing on the back...this is one reason I suspect that they photographed it first and made the copy without having to take the original out of the frame, then came back and simply replaced the original. So...the writing on back had been unknown, un-photographed, and un-duplicated.
They made the copy to show both our names at the bottom right, and did both in black only.
This was a major flaw - a glaring 'tell'.

Other than that, it looks almost like an exact copy.


If anyone has any thoughts or additional knowledge/ideas as to HOW such a theft can be done.....please, please, please feel free to post any/all comments, suggestions, thoughts, etc.,

and/or igm me at: farmlily3

 

Farmlily, I am so sad for your loss of such a valuable work of art. I know how valuable a beloved piece of art can be to the one who loving made the painting. With your daughters help, it is beyond priceless.

Unfortunately, I am not so got at solving mysteries, but I will ponder this today while I prepare to go away for the weekend.

I hope that it can be solved and returned to you quickly.

Thank you for sharing your loss with us so we can help support you.

 

Thank you, sglick. You are so right about being beyond priceless...it is the only one of its kind that we did together as just one painting.
I really appreciate your trying to help....whatever may or may not come of it. Your kindness is like balm to my soul.

 

So so so sorry for your horrendous loss farmlily!!!
My advice would be to scour all websites to do with Dr. Seuss art and dealers. I would email or call any/all dealers and let them know of your theft and ask them to contact you if they see or hear anything. If these crooks are as sneaky to make a copy...then they are obviously looking to resale for high $$$$.
Also post on facebook, instagram etc. The more people who hear about your loss the better! More eyes/ears to look or hear of who took your art.
Good luck sweet friend. I truly hope you get it back!

 

Rotten dirty bleeps!I just can't believe that someone could be that much of a loser
You can do just about anything in Photoshop these days. Even take a photo and make it look like a painting. It is a special effect offered in most graphic art software. I know this because we do it for people everyday. I manage a small print shop....


Call your local news and tell them ALL about it...especially the fact that your daughter helped and has her own name on it. Look in craigslist and the like under the kids, art, collectales sections to see if someone is selling knock offs. Also do a search for "Dr. Suess" art work etc.

So very sorry for your precious lossyour paiting must be truly awesome...

 

farmlily3 deepest sympathies for this cruel loss.

As the copy shows both signatures when only one was visible on the original framed work, the picture that was taken for the copy had to be with the picture unframed. So the thief needed multiple access to the original or enough time to photo, print & exchange. Where was the artwork kept & when & who would have had access?

Can you tell from other parts of the framed copy if it is the same size as the original or is it slightly reduced? If the signatures were added to the printed copy, the thief would still have needed to know what was under the frame. The type of printer used should be something the police could determine. If not your local PD, ask them for state or other expert assistance.

The thief was only concerned with the front of the painting that showed, nothing you had written on the back. Do you have your own personal photo of the framed & unframed work? This will help your claim should you find it on the internet. I wish you success in finding your painting & hope the police catch the thief!

 

Thank you thank you thank you so much, ALL of you, for your kind sympathies and great and heartfelt suggestions!! They are really good ones! I will call the Officer tomorrow (later today).

Good observation, dafodily - yes! The copy IS slightly smaller than the original!!
Unfortunately, I do not have a photo of the original, but do have one of the copy in the frame. This was just accidently taken by another friend a short while ago when she was photographing my living room, so it is from an angle, and the light on it is not real good.

007Farming - I am so grateful for your expert information!! I will pass it along to the Police when I call them again. I live in a small town and our police do not seem familiar with something like fine art theft...they did not seem to understand how the theft could have been done. This will be very helpful!

More great suggestions, Brookeham! I will search the Dr. Seuss art and dealer websites to start.
The sad thought has occurred to me though, that if a private collector bought it from a thief for their own collection...it might mean I'll never see it again.


I do have two suspects in mind - the only two who have had extended opportunities. Sadly, one is a very dear friend, and I will do nothing to harm him in return. He is 'family'. The other one....well, he has been watching my apt. for several years and would deserve whatever he got. I have actually caught him on my deck at night where he watches through my sliding glass doors, have also found his cigarettes there many times, and - by his night time behavior - suspect him of being an opportunist thief in the neighborhood. From the corner of the deck that he mostly watches from, he cannot see me, but what his direct line-of-sight view shows is right smack on the wall where my painting was! Since he lives in the apt. upstairs, he also knows my comings and goings - even when I take my shower, or go to sleep or get up...just as I know his comings and goings. (The price one pays for the convenience of apt. living.)

Thank you all again for your loving support and most welcome thoughts and suggestions!! Please, if any more thoughts occur to anyone, I'd really appreciate hearing any and everything!! They help to ease the heart-hurt.....

On another note, sglick I hope you have a really great weekend away!!

 

farmlily - My sympathies on the loss of your painting, and I hope to hear it is recovered. Such a dreadful thing to happen! I despise thievery and hope the person is caught quickly.

That lurker person you describe sounds horribly creepy; if he isn't proved as the thief I hope the police question him enough to make him leave you alone.

 

Thank you Willow!
I hope H. Creepy leaves me alone, too!! Good thing I am squeaky clean! Lol!

 

Farmlily my heart broke when I read about this. I am so sorry!
I really hope you will get the painting back!
Will you tell the police the two suspects you have in mind?

 

Thank you all very, very much for your help and loving support through this traumatic experience!!

My apologies for taking so long to respond again - it has been a nightmare, almost unbelievable. It leaves me with a broken heart.....
and my belief in the 'Law", represented by our Police Force, has been trashed big time!

This is a brief summary of what has happened:

When the Policeman came he brought with him......an a-m-b-u-l-a-n-c-e (! To investigate a theft?!) and they took my 'vitals'. The EMT said mine were better than theirs! Then this policeman called for some sort of mental health assessment - again, flying colors, and completely oriented.
Nevertheless, he kept trying to insist that I was having an 'event' - even though it went against all the tests that HE had brought with him!!
Then he left, saying that their person who does the fingerprinting would not be able to do it till Sunday.....which then came and went.
Finally I get a call from the woman who accompanied him last time, saying they were coming out to do the fingerprinting.
Yaaaay!! As with most crimes, TIME is of the essence, and they had already wasted days!!

Finally, I thought - they are going to do the job they should have done in-the-beginning! Or so I thought.................they l-i-e-d.

Does this sound a bit odd to you, of a way to investigate a simple theft, as it did/does to me?!? Wait! It gets better....!!

Sooo...the Policeman and his 'entourage' came in once again, and started asking me all kinds of questions, mostly about how I thought someone could do this. (Isn't that what HE is supposed to be trained to figure out??)

Now...I am not an Art thief, but neither am I stupid - and I had at one time worked for Ernest F. Mills Investigations, and was very good at it.....so I gave them the only logical answer that actually fit ALL the FACTS. I also showed them your post, 007Farming, since you do qualify as an 'expert' as to how a photo can easily be made to look like the real deal.

I also wanted to get the fingerprinting done, as it is messy and would take some time to set it up so it would not damage the 'painting', (so the Policeman kept saying, in great detail, about how the 'dust' was so 'fine' that it would soak through, never come out, and permanently 'ruin the painting').... even though it is a copy and not the original.
Once again the Policeman kept questioning me as to how this fingerprinting could be done without destroying the artwork! (DUHHHHH!!!) So - once again - I did his job for him and devised an easy and effective solution - and since the painting in question was MINE, I had no qualms about doing it this way. I feel sure there are fingerprints on the tape on the back of the copy as the tape was carelessly loose at the edges...and NOT the same kind of tape I have ever used!!
(Unless the thief was smart enough to use surgical gloves so as not to leave prints...and Mr. H. Creepy in the Apt. above - doesn't even come close.)

Okaaaaay.......By now I had:
1. logically and factually done his job for him, giving him the possible/probable who, what, where, when, and even how - but not the why.
2. solved the dilemma of how to safely do the fingerprinting.
3. exhibited NO symptoms of any sort of 'event', etc. etc.

He seemed at a loss - so, what do you think he did then??!?!!
He said "I'm going to go talk to the guy upstairs."

Suuuuure...let's go alert/warn the Primary Suspect!!!!

When the policeman came back down, he said in a loud, dominant voice: 'You have had an event. THIS CASE IS CLOSED.'

He gave it a few heartbeats.....
I was too shocked to even respond to something so obviously in opposition to the facts
.....and then they left.

I think the two women that were with him were as shocked as I was...and they left silently and slowly.

As soon as they were gone, activity exploded upstairs - lots of banging, scraping, loud noises, running up and down the stairs, up and down, again and again, as if the devil himself was at their heels! Once everything they wanted to take out of the Apt. was loaded up, off they drove!!
(They sure must have had a lot of 'stuff' up there that they had to get rid of in a hurry!!)

*Question: Why would that/a Policeman alert the Prime suspect in a theft??
(Possibly/probably many thefts.....)

BTW, 'H.C.' is well known to the Police, and not in a good way.



Does that say "Bye Bye Evidence" as loudly to you as it does to me?!!


Sadly, it also says "bye bye" to my painting and the memories of a loved, treasured, shared, moment in time . My daughter will never be five years old again, nor can that 'moment in time' ever be repeated.

 

I am beyond words at the incompetence of your law enforcement representative. Do not let them just walk away saying case closed!
1st question for you, how much time passed between your reporting the crime & when the policeman arrived w/ambulance?

Make an appointment with the highest ranked person in your city's law enforcement & when they ask what it's about, tell them you have issues with how your case/complaint was handled. DO NOT get into details over the phone. Be calm but insistent

When you meet, ask why an ambulance came when you reported a theft/break-in? If someone was concerned about your health why did it take X amount of time for a response?
Explain as calmly as you can how the policeman/investigator delayed, discouraged and damaged any chance of recovery of the stolen art work. Even if prosecution for the theft was questionable by his standard, your home was broken into! To have printed a photographic copy of the picture shows there was some premeditation in the theft & the loss of confidence in your local law enforcement has left you feeling not just angry and sad, but less safe in your own home.

Anyone who can give some additional proof. your daughter or your friend's photograph who could go with you? If they ask what you want them to do. How about a proper investigation? And that police officer is in need of retraining! He showed up at your door already convinced you had an "event" before he had seen anything! Why was that?

You deserve much better from law enforcement and don't be afraid to make a complaint to whatever/whomever oversees your local law enforcement. You remain in my thoughts.

 

I am so sorry to hear this news Lily
Well all the American police series don't reflect the reality of course...What you described is a little better of how a police department in Greece would handle the situation. I didn't understand one part, what did the officer meant that you had an event. What did he mean by "event"?
The same thought as Mindy crossed my mind too..

 

Lily, I am very sorry to hear of this disappointing outcome. My sister had a problem with her local law enforcement.
She took the police report and all evidence to her city councilman (one she knew and trusted). The situation was handled quickly and discreetly. Amy was always ready to write a Letter to the Editor about wrongs she thought should be brought to light.
If you are not familiar with your city officials, a little research might point you in the right direction. Their records are well publicized.

 

Oh my word farmlily!!!!! How crushed you must be!!!! I am so frustrated for you!!!! An event? Sounds like the police officer was having an "event" of complete incompetence and laziness!!!!! I would definitely report him(badge number) to your city councelman like joan said!!!! I would also write a letter to your newspaper editor!!!!!
I am terribly sorry for your loss!!!

 

Hello farmlily3. I remember you well and think of you often.

By choosing to comment in this environment and knowing the responsibilities I have, the remarks made below should at best be regarded as general and not at all meant to serve as a recommended course of direction.

An individual with a concern will approach my lady-boss. By whatever method chosen, she determines whether or not to consider becoming more seriously involved. While making her determination she often times will ask for a recommendation. Her primary concern appears to be whether or not she has any chance whatsoever of providing a satisfactory solution to whatever concern is being considered. (I know she is answering for herself: Should we be bothered at all?) Methods are most times not haphazard, yet some are routine, and some become very expensive very quickly.

In making my determination of what to recommend to her, regardless of whether action will be taken at a later time or not, ALL emotions and emotional statements made by anyone are completely ignored by me as best as possible. I can see many emotions expressed in this thread. With no doubt, emotions will always surface. (Ignoring the emotions of others remains difficult for me even after many years.) All anyone assessing a problem or concern requires are the emotionless facts.

This action is now standard operating procedure in many departments and in many jurisdictions. I have found there are justifiable reasons. (The very last occurrence desired is the creation of an even more serious problem than at hand. Action within seconds may be just what is necessary to save a life.)

Any investigating organization will ask for this information, routinely ask. Anything, even if later proven to be invalid or mildly inaccurate, is better than nothing.

Actions are frequently suggested where the sanity and credibility of the individual with the concern are determined. Recommendations have included both a psychological assessment as well as a personality assessment. (No harm is intended for the individual who has chosen to submit to such assessments. Simply because an initial psychological assessment is returned which indicates failure does not indicate an individual is crazy.)

Fact finding. Many allegations, including facts, are often part of a multifaceted puzzle where one has little idea as to the total number of pieces.

Who made the determination as to regard anyone as "the Primary Suspect?"
What facts support that determination?
If Police officers went to a "suspected" individual, was that individual read their "Miranda rights?" (many reasons why important as legal proceedings may follow)

I find the word "priceless" is used.
to whom, what, when, whas it insured, for how much, why or why not, which insurance company, the policy statement ....... (thoroughness, not to hurt you or take a side)

I read something regarding time is of the essence.
to whom,....
Theft is regarded as a crime. The wheels of the criminal justice system are often slow in turning yet they do turn.

The newspaper has been mentioned.
I have never encouraged or discouraged media contact only because of the uncertainty that many public appeals and mass broadcasts of information have upon the outcome. Curiosity and the search for answers or evidence or a specific item can last for decades. (Most are paid decently who are attempting to resolve a concern. Too often I ask and not out of anger: Why are you doing this? What do you hope to gain? Where are we going with the answer even if you get it?

If indeed a concern was taken on by my lady boss and handed to me: Independence in every aspect throughout the problem-solving process is mandatory for me as well as those receiving assistance under me. (This is easier said than done.)

I sincerely hope that your heart-hurt becomes manageable and wish you success with the intact recovery of the item of your concern.

 

I'm so sorry this has happened to you farmlily3 and hope that somehow your picture will be returned to you.
Personally I'd write a letter to my local newspaper, naming and shaming that so-called policeman. He certainly needs to be dealt with by his superiors. As for the rotten ******** who did this I hope they get caught.

My very, best wishes to you and your daughter.