USA: Guggenheim Spanish art show goes on despite theft of Francisco Goya masterpiece

A new Spanish art exhibition began on Thursday (November 16) at New York's Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. The show, entitled "Spanish Painting from El Greco to Picasso: Time, Truth and History," opened despite a missing painting by Francisco de Goya which was stolen en route to the exhibition last week. The collection is a panoramic overview of the history of five centuries of Spanish art. Culled from private and public collections throughout the U.S. and Europe, the exhibition includes unique sights, such as Francisco de Zurbaran's "Saint Hugh in the Refectory," which makes a rare appearance outside of Spain. Among other notables like Diego Velazquez and Joan Miro, Salvador Dali is represented by several pieces, including his "Dream Caused by the Flight of a Bee around a Pomegranate." In its exhibition, the Guggenheim decided not to showcase the art in chronological order, and instead arranged the paintings based on 15 thematic genres, like Monks, Landscapes, and Childhood. Co-curator of the exhibition, Carmen Gimenez, said, "We think it's truly interesting that art cannot be seen the same way today as it was 20 years ago." Despite the nearly 140 paintings on display, much of the attention at the Guggenheim is still circling around painting by Goya that was stolen last week. According to a statement issued by the Museum, he 228-year-old painting "Children with a Cart" was stolen near Scranton, Pennsylvania while en route from Ohio's Toledo Museum of Art. Insured for more than $1 million (USD), the stolen piece would be difficult to sell on the open market, according to the museum. Lisa Dennison, director of the Guggenheim, said she hopes the FBI will be able to retrieve the painting and that it will eventually go on display in the museum. Said Dennison, "The painting, "Children with a Cart," from 1778, was stolen en route from Toledo to New York while in the care of a professional art transport provider. A reward of $50,000 dollars has been posted for information leading to the recovery of the painting. This is news that has been picked up literally by wire services around the world, and we believe very strongly that this will help us with the recovery of the painting." "Children with a Cart" was painted in 1778 as a model for a tapestry. It depicts four colorfully dressed children and a wooden cart at the base of a dark tree, with a billowing cloud in the background. Despite its absence, visitors can still see other Goya pieces on display in the collection, like his "The Duchess of Alba," and "The Young Woman (The Letter)." No collection of Spanish art would be complete without works by Pablo Picasso, and the Guggenheim has several on show, including the "Portrait of Jamie Sabartes," and "The Infanta Margarita Maria from the Maids of Honor (Las Meninas), after Velazquez." The Guggenheim's collection will be on display in New York through March 28, 2007.

ITN Source | November 17, 2006

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