Rembrandt van Rijn, Christ in the Storm on the Sea of Galilee, 1633, unknown location. One of the figures in blue invites the viewer with a simple glance into the tempestuous scenery – it’s Rembrandt himself staring directly at the viewer, a self-portrait of him holding a rope and his cap.Īnthony Amore, the museum’s chief of security, believes that the thieves were after Rembrandts all along since all museums in Massachusetts with Rembrandts were robbed before this heist. This puts an emphasis on the whirling sea and the infuriated sky, letting the classical contrasting game between darkness and light roll in front of the viewer. The biblical scene holds great intensity with vibrant, bright color choices and detailed work characteristic to Rembrandt’s early style, rather than the less descriptive approach that we are used to seeing in his later paintings. Rembrandt van Rijn was a Dutch Baroque painter who lived from 1606 to 1669. Sean Dungan/ Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum.įirst, they went for Rembrandt’s Christ in the Storm on the Sea of Galilee – curiously enough, the only seascape the artist ever painted. Immediately, the two young security guards are immobilized, the thieves covering their eyes and mouths with duct tape and leaving them in the museum’s basement, handcuffed to pipes until the authorities arrive at 8:15 a.m.ĭutch Room, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston. Violating the museum’s security protocol, Abath does exactly what he is asked to. Shortly thereafter the police officers asked Abath to step out from behind his desk because “didn’t they have a warrant out for his arrest?” according to Stephen Kurkjian, a reporter at the Boston Globe who investigated the case for decades. Hestand, falling directly in the thieves’ net. because of some “disturbance complaints”. All of a sudden two men dressed as police officers show up at the employees’ entrance at 1:24 a.m. A young Rick Abath, “a hippie guy who wasn’t hurting anything” as he put it, spends another shift in the empty museum with his fellow watchman, Randy Hestand. To be more exact, the biggest art heist in history. However, maybe what isn’t there draws even more attention to the museum and Isabella’s story, like the empty frames left behind after a heist. Now, the imposing The Rape of Europe by Titian, the most important example of Renaissance art, and the famous El Jaleo by John Singer Sargent hang silently on the walls of the palazzo. For example, John Singer Sargent used to paint in the Gothic Room. As time passed, the palazzo acquired more and more artworks and hosted several concerts, lectures, and exhibitions – all in the name of culture and encouraging artists to promote their work. Paintings and sculptures to furniture and tapestries, the freshly built museum had it all and it was ready to open its doors for the elite of Boston’s society on January 1st of 1903. Sears, Isabella designed her yet to be Venetian palazzo fitted for a dedicated patron of arts. With the help of local architect Willard T. After her husband’s death in 1898, she stuck to her plans even more tightly than before. This was only the beginning because Isabella had a contagious ambition which fueled her vision for the future of art collectors in Boston. John Singer Sargent, Isabella Stewart Gardner, 1888, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston, USA. With the support of Charles Eliot Norton, the first art history professor at Harvard University, Isabella gained an interest in collecting early editions of Dante’s works, along with other rare manuscripts and books. Coming from a wealthy family, Isabella left New York to finish her studies in France. Isabella Stewart Gardner was an American philanthropist and art collector who lived between 18. So, are you ready to solve the mystery of the missing artworks and bring them home? The stakes are too high now no doubt the museum is offering a $10 million reward to anyone who knows their location.
After 30 years from the biggest art theft in history, we still don’t know where the $500 million artworks are hidden. What the police didn’t find were the 13 pieces missing from Isabella’s art collection. Two men, police uniforms and some duct tape this is how Rick Abath and Randy Hestand, security men at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, found themselves tied up after midnight in the basement of the museum until the authorities released them six hours later on the morning after St.
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