271 Stolen Picasso's

About a month ago I posted on 271 possible Picasso's which were said to be given as a gift by the artist to a workman (click HERE for the original post and source material).  The NY Times ran a Christmas Eve article (sorry for the delayed post) stating the art appears to be in fact by Picasso.  The collection of sketches, watercolors and collages which Pierre Le Guennec, a retired electrician claims were given to him by Picasso in the 1970's may be valued at $80 million.  The relatives of Picasso claim the paintings were stolen and have request a full investigation. The paintings were rediscovered when Le Guennec tried to have them authenticated. A sale of other Picasso was recently postponed in due to the potential bad publicity being generated by these 271 pieces.  It will be interesting to see how the French courts work this situation out.

The NY Times reports

A preliminary police investigation ensued; on Dec. 13 the case went to the next step when a magistrate in the area opened a judicial investigation to explore the possibility of “possession of stolen goods.” (No criminal charges have been filed.)

Meanwhile, in an apparent coincidence, an auction of the estate of the widow of Picasso’s onetime driver, which was to have included 80 other works by the artist, was postponed this month as a result of the accusations. Mr. Le Guennec is a cousin of the widow and is one of her heirs, and the other inheritors felt that the suspicions hanging over him might mar the sale.

“L’Affaire Picasso,” as the press calls it, began in September, when Mr. Le Guennec and his wife, Danielle, 68, packed their art into a modest suitcase and traveled north to Paris to have it authenticated by Claude Ruiz-Picasso, the artist’s son and the administrator of the Picasso estate. Mr. Ruiz-Picasso, recognizing the authenticity of the works, immediately suspected theft and contacted a lawyer, who soon brought the suit that opened the initial investigation.

Reached by telephone, Ms. Le Guennec declined to speak to a reporter or put her husband on the phone. Evelyne Rees, a lawyer for the couple, said they were exhausted after weeks of incessant interview requests.

“These poor people, they’re distraught, crushed that they’re being accused of being thieves,” she said.

Mr. Le Guennec says the art was given to him one evening in 1971 by Picasso’s second wife, Jacqueline, on behalf of the artist, who was then 89 or 90. The Le Guennecs, who say they live off a monthly pension of less than $1,500, claim the works sat untouched in a box in their garage for nearly 40 years; they say they never realized the cache’s value.

To read the full NYT article,  click HERE.