Overview

In 1994 two important paintings by J.M.W. Turner (then valued at 24 million pounds) were stolen from a German public gallery while on loan from Tate Britain, London. Sandy Nairne (then Director of Programmes at the Tate) became centrally involved in the pursuit of the pictures, and the negotiation for their return. In Art Theft he relates for the first time this complex, 8-year, cloak-and-dagger story, which finally concluded in 2002 with the Turners going back on public display. In addition to this narrative, Nairne discusses other high-value art thefts, trying to resolve the puzzle of why thieves steal well-known works of art which cannot be sold, even on the black market.

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9781861898517

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Reviews

'A stupefying amount of Nairne's life, as his riveting book reveals, was devoted to nerve-racking negotiations with mysterious middlemen, sudden and futile expeditions to Germany, tense meetings with loss adjusters, Tate trustees and detectives.' - The Observer

'I was gripped by Sandy Nairne's matter-of-fact but hair-raising account of the efforts to reclaim the two Turners' - Phillip Hensher, 'Books of the Year', The Spectator 'In Art Theft and the Case of the Stolen Turners, Sandy Nairne describes going underground to help recover the booty of a daring heist. Superheroes all.' - Elaine Showalter, 'Books of the Year', TLS 'a fascinating read, delving into some of the important moral issues associated with the paying of recovery fees.' Alexander McCall Smith, 'Books of the Year', The Scotsman 'a thoughtful (and personal) entree into the business of art theft' - Sunday Times 'Sandy Nairne takes us into an art-and-underworld maze that matches Raymond Chandler at his most labyrinthine ... raise[s] interesting questions about why thieves steal art and why art theft should matter to us.' - RA Magazine 'a gripping account of the complex and delicate negotiations for the recovery of the Turners.' - Country Life '[a] vivid account of the workings of a hidden art world - the culmination of over eight years of research - has at its heart an exploration of different concepts of value.' - Apollo 'A stupefying amount of Nairne's life, as his riveting book reveals, was devoted to nerve-racking negotiations with mysterious middlemen, sudden and futile expeditions to Germany, tense meetings with loss adjusters, Tate trustees and detectives.' - The Observer 'Nairne's book is fascinating in its account of the astonishingly British way in which extraordinary legal precedents were set, and special permissions were sought, to legitimise the return of the Turners' - The Spectator 'Nairne's insider's chronicle of the investigation and subsequent recovery of the paintings via negotiation often reads like a fine arts version of The Thomas Crown Affair. And that romanticized perception - a crime of derring-do by suave gentlemen or plucky outsiders - is part of the problem.' - Washington Post 'Rarely does an institution victimized by an art theft recover its stolen works of art ... It is also rare that someone associated with the victimized institution writes an intriguing, in-depth account of the recovery effort. Sandy Nairne has just such a captivating account in Art Theft and the Case of the Stolen Turners ... a dramatic narrative of the case that dispels many of the myths and misconceptions that have surrounded the circumstances of the works' extraordinary recovery ... I would recommend Nairne's new book to anyone interested in the intricacies of stolen art recovery.' - Art Theft Central 'A sensational, frank book' - Welt am Sonntag

'I was gripped by Sandy Nairne's matter-of-fact but hair-raising account of the efforts to reclaim the two Turners' - Philip Hensher, 'Books of the Year', The Spectator 'In Art Theft and the Case of the Stolen Turners, Sandy Nairne describes going underground to help recover the booty of a daring heist. Superheroes all.' - Elaine Showalter, 'Books of the Year', TLS 'a fascinating read, delving into some of the important moral issues associated with the paying of recovery fees.' Alexander McCall Smith, 'Books of the Year', The Scotsman 'a thoughtful (and personal) entree into the business of art theft' - Sunday Times 'Sandy Nairne takes us into an art-and-underworld maze that matches Raymond Chandler at his most labyrinthine ... raise[s] interesting questions about why thieves steal art and why art theft should matter to us.' - RA Magazine 'a gripping account of the complex and delicate negotiations for the recovery of the Turners.' - Country Life '[a] vivid account of the workings of a hidden art world - the culmination of over eight years of research - has at its heart an exploration of different concepts of value.' - Apollo 'A stupefying amount of Nairne's life, as his riveting book reveals, was devoted to nerve-racking negotiations with mysterious middlemen, sudden and futile expeditions to Germany, tense meetings with loss adjusters, Tate trustees and detectives.' - The Observer 'Nairne's book is fascinating in its account of the astonishingly British way in which extraordinary legal precedents were set, and special permissions were sought, to legitimise the return of the Turners' - The Spectator 'Nairne's insider's chronicle of the investigation and subsequent recovery of the paintings via negotiation often reads like a fine arts version of The Thomas Crown Affair. And that romanticized perception - a crime of derring-do by suave gentlemen or plucky outsiders - is part of the problem.' - Washington Post 'Rarely does an institution victimized by an art theft recover its stolen works of art ... It is also rare that someone associated with the victimized institution writes an intriguing, in-depth account of the recovery effort. Sandy Nairne has just such a captivating account in Art Theft and the Case of the Stolen Turners ... a dramatic narrative of the case that dispels many of the myths and misconceptions that have surrounded the circumstances of the works' extraordinary recovery ... I would recommend Nairne's new book to anyone interested in the intricacies of stolen art recovery.' - Art Theft Central 'A sensational, frank book' - Welt am Sonntag

Author Information

Sandy Nairne is Director of the National Portrait Gallery, London. He was previously Director of Programmes at Tate, Director of Visual Arts for the Arts Council of Great Britain and Director of Exhibitions at the ICA, London. He has worked as a curator and writer.

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