ewsba.se
Dusseldorf’s Gallery Ludorff is appealing to the public for any information about a gold-colored bronze sculpture by Jean Arp that was stolen from its booth at Art Cologne on Sunday, November 8, the last day of the fair.
“If you visited our booth during this period and took any photographs, we would be very grateful if you could share them with us,” states the gallery on its website. “If you are being offered for sale the work … or if you have any information regarding its whereabouts, please contact us or the police,” it adds.
It is believed the sculpture was snatched between 4:55 p.m. and 5:10 p.m. Sunday. Soon afterwards, staff noticed it had been removed from its pedestal, and at first, they thought a colleague had taken it down. “But we realized very quickly that the sculpture had been stolen. The booth was very crowded at the time. Security was informed immediately,” wrote Maya Hanke, Gallery Ludorff’s PR and Art Fair Manager, in a message to ARTnews. The gallery has filed a criminal complaint with police, who are investigating, as reported by Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ).
The 1962 sculpture, titled S’élevant (Rising), measuring just under 30 cm in height, was priced at €145,000 ($160,800), and displayed unbolted to a plinth for the duration of the fair, from November 4 to 8. “There were four employees at the stand that day and the sculpture wasn’t particularly small or light. The way the person managed to leave the exhibition grounds without anyone noticing remains unclear to us,” Hanke said.
“The fair’s security measures were seriously lacking,” she added. “Although security staff were stationed at the access points to the exhibitor and staff areas, as well as at the exits of the hall, not all individuals or bags were checked at the entrances and exits to the fairgrounds. As far as we are aware, there were no security staff stationed at the highly frequented areas or near the exhibition stands,” Hanke observed.
Art Cologne did not respond to Gallery Ludorff’s comments about inadequate security at the time of writing. Earlier today, fair representative Judith Leyendecker stated to ARTnews: “We are very sorry about the incident at Galerie Ludorff’s booth and hope the artwork will be found quickly and unharmed. We are in contact with the gallery and are supporting the authorities in their investigation.”
To questions about how the theft was committed, Leyendecker said the fair could not comment further on the ongoing police investigation, nor on “specific security measures.”
The German-French sculptor, painter, and poet Jean Arp, also known as Hans Arp, lived from 1886 to 1966, and was a major figure of the Dada and Surrealism movements. The stolen modern artwork has the biomorphic, organic forms characteristic of Arp’s later practice, and like a molten sprout, seems to be reaching upwards, as its title, Rising, suggests. The gallery said the work is insured and, with its unique numbering, “is not marketable.”
In conclusion to their online appeal, the gallery said that notwithstanding losing a Modern sculpture worth over $160,000, the fair had been thoroughly worthwhile. “It is deeply regrettable that an incident of this kind has cast a shadow over what was otherwise a very successful and enjoyable fair for us.”