Like original Picasso art? Just take it (and get arrested).

The show season is starting again, with our first show in Redondo Beach, CA, July 29-31, 2011. Since I will have less time to write about the interesting things happening in the antiques world, I will be posting new blog entries once or twice a week — Mondays and Thursdays. If you don’t see a new post on Thursday, it’s because I was too busy, so look for a new one the following Monday.

Mark Lugo, photo courtesy AP

Mark Lugo of Hoboken, NJ, has very good taste. He likes fine wine and good art. The problem was that he didn’t have the money to pay for it, so he just took what he liked. Lugo was arrested in San Francisco on July 6, 2011, a day after allegedly stealing a 1965 Picasso drawing, “Tete de Femme” from the Weinstein Gallery on Union St. in San Francisco. His modus operandi was to calmly remove art from the wall of a gallery or hotel, walk out, and then take a taxi. In the San Francisco theft, he was caught on video in a taxi, at his hotel and at a nearby restaurant.

Mark Lugo with the suspected stolen Picasso. Photo courtesy of AP.

Using tapes from previous robberies, the police were able to obtain a search warrant for his apartment in Hoboken, NJ, where 11 other stolen artworks were recovered. The most valuable of the stolen works ($350,000) was a 1917 Fernand Léger India ink composition on linen, “Composition aux Elements Mécaniques (Composition of Mechanical Elements). It was on loan to the Carlyle Hotel in NYC, where it was hanging on the wall in the lobby. Lugo supposedly removed the work from the wall and calmly walked out of the hotel on the morning of Jun 29, 2011. All of Lugo’s suspected thefts occurred within a relatively short period of about four weeks.

Picasso "Tete de Femme". Photo courtesy of Weinstein Gallery.

To top it off, Lugo, who had been a sommelier at fine New York restaurants, like BLT Fish, was also suspected of stealing three bottles of very expensive wine, Château Pétrus Pomerol, from Gary’s Wines in Wayne, N.J. At $2,000 a bottle, that’s really fine wine. In no surprise, the wine has not been recovered. Now that’s funny.

The New York Times reported on July 15, 2011, that his attorney, Douglas I. Horngrad, said “I think there is some psychiatric episode going on. Everything we’ve heard that Mark has taken, he’s apparently taken in a short period of time, with no indication of any such activity before then. So this sounds like the act of someone in the middle of a compulsive episode.”

On Friday, July 15, 2011, in a San Francisco court, Lugo pleaded not guilty to stealing the Picasso from the Weinstein Gallery. Judge Samuel Feng denied his request to reduce his bail from $5 million to $2 million, citing that the defendant “posed a threat to public safety and local business owners”. He will remain incarcerated until his next court appearance, scheduled for August 23, 2011.

Rare Louis Icart etching Miss America

Check out my new acquisitions. I just listed a very rare Louis Icart etching, entitled “Miss America”, plus a gorgeous Daum Nancy pink floral vase; a rare Tiffany Studios desk lamp in the Spanish pattern; several fine Daum vases; a Daum lamp; several Galle vases; and several more Tiffany Favrile vases. Soon I’ll be listing a wonderful Tiffany Studios 7-light lily lamp with beautiful shades and a fine patina. Also coming soon will be several wonderful European ceramic items by Clement Massier, Zsolnay and Amphora. Here’s the link. chasenantiques.com

Picasso painting sells for $106.5 million, a world record

Picasso 'Nude, Green Leaves and Bust', Christie's New York, lot 6, May 4. 2010

Picasso 'Nude, Green Leaves and Bust', Christie's New York, lot 6, May 4. 2010

Christie’s New York held several Impressionist and Modern Art sales, May 4-5, 2010. The PROPERTY FROM THE COLLECTION OF MRS. SIDNEY F. BRODY sale included lot 6, a Pablo Picasso painting entitled “Nude, Green Leaves and Bust”. It sold for $106,482,500, becoming the most expensive single work of art ever sold at auction. It eclipsed the recent record of $101,426,070, set by a bronze sculpture by Alberto Giacometti entitled “Walking Man I”, that was sold at Sotheby’s in London on February 3, 2010.

Alberto Giacometti bronze 'Walking Man I', lot Sotheby's London, February 3, 2010

Alberto Giacometti bronze 'Walking Man I', lot Sotheby's London, February 3, 2010

The painting was purchased in 1950 from the art dealer Paul Rosenberg for $17,000. It was painted in 1932 and depicts the model Marie-Thérèse Walter. The painting has only been exhibited once in public, in 1961, at an exhibition sponsored by the UCLA Art Council.

Interestingly enough, the ladies of The View discussed the sale of the painting on their show, but were forced by the network’s attorneys to blur out the breasts of the nude. What??? Scantily clad women can dance on Dancing With the Stars, soap operas have blatant sexual topics and near nudity, but The View can’t show two single line breasts? Just plain nuts.

The Brody sale also eclipsed another record, the highest gross for any single owner collection sold at auction — $224,177,500. Click on this link for the entire sale results. The Brody Collection Results.

In the next few days and weeks, I’ll be adding my new acquisitions to my website as they come in. Please take a look. Click on this link chasenantiques.com.

Please send me your suggestions or questions about art glass, lamps, Louis Icart, shows, auctions, etc. If it’s interesting, I’ll answer your question in a future blog.

Christie’s New York sells the Michael Crichton collection of contemporary art for over $100 million

Jasper Johns "Flag", Christie's New York, lot 7, May 11, 2010

Jasper Johns 'Flag', Christie's New York, lot 7, May 11, 2010

Recent art auctions at Christie’s New York brought some extraordinary results. Tuesday, May 11, 2010, was the day that Christie’s sold the art collection of Michael Crichton, of Jurassic Park fame. The highlight of the sale was the iconic image of the American flag, painted by Jasper Johns in the period from 1960-1966. As Mr. Crichton and Mr. Johns were personal friends, he was able to purchase the painting directly from the artist. It was sold as lot 7 and carried a pre-sale estimate of $10-15 million. The result was a new world record for the artist, $28,642,500, including buyer’s premium.

Robert Rauschenberg 'Studio Painting';, Christie's New York, lot 24, May 11, 2010

Robert Rauschenberg 'Studio Painting', Christie's New York, lot 24, May 11, 2010

The Michael Crichton collection was 100% sold — an unusual feat for a collection of this magnitude. The sale grossed $103.3 million, a record for a single owner sale of contemporary art. Works by other artists also performed well, with 17 of the 31 lots offered selling for over $1 million each. The second best lot of the sale went to a mixed media painting by Robert Rauschenberg entitled “Studio Painting”. It sold for $11,058,500.

Picasso 'Femme et fillettes', Christie's New York lot 13, May 11, 2010

Picasso 'Femme et fillettes', Christie's New York lot 13, May 11, 2010

Three Picasso paintings in the sale sold well, with lot 13, “Femme et fillettes”, selling for the most at $6,578,500.

For a complete listing of the sale results, click this link. Christie’s Michael Crichton sale results.

In the next few days and weeks, I’ll be adding my new acquisitions to my website as they come in. Please take a look. Click on this link chasenantiques.com.

Please send me your suggestions or questions about art glass, lamps, Louis Icart, shows, auctions, etc. If it’s interesting, I’ll answer your question in a future blog.