近距离内射合集

Two stolen works of art were returned to the University of New Mexico鈥檚 Harwood Museum of Art in Taos on Monday, after four decades and an FBI investigation.

鈥淚鈥檓 just thrilled to have them back at the Harwood,鈥� said Juniper Leherissey, executive director of the Harwood Museum.

In March 1985, Victor Higgins鈥� 鈥淎spens鈥� and Joseph Henry Sharp鈥檚 鈥淥klahoma Cheyenne鈥� 鈥� also known as 鈥淚ndian Boy in Full Dress鈥� 鈥� were stolen from Harwood when it was a public library.

Both artists were influential members of the Taos Society of Artists, a group of artists who devoted themselves to Southwestern art. Sharp was a founding member of the group, and Higgins was one of the youngest members, according to Leherissey.

鈥淚t turns out that the thieves were fairly infamous. They were Rita and Jerry Alter, who are the subject of a documentary, 鈥楾he Thief Collector,鈥欌�� Leherissey said.

That documentary, which will be screened at the museum on the evening of June 6, as part of 鈥淭he Return of Taos Treasures鈥� event, details the Alters鈥� theft of another artwork, a $100 million Willem de Kooning painting from the University of Arizona Art Museum.

鈥淲e were more of a public library with an art collection then,鈥� Leherissey said. 鈥淗e (Jerry Alter) was in a trenchcoat. She (Rita Alter) pretended to need a wheelchair, and so created a distraction. And I believe he went upstairs and basically yanked the paintings from the wall and hid them in his trenchcoat.鈥�

After the return of the de Kooning painting in 2017, a Los Angeles-based investigative reporter, Lou Schachter, realized the duo may have taken works of art from other places, too. He reached out to Leherissey, who convened an Art Recovery Task Force composed of the Harwood Collection Committee, board members and key staff to gather evidence of the theft and report it to the FBI.

In April 2024, Leherissey received a call from the FBI, which decided to pick up the case, giving the museum hope of uncovering the whereabouts of the paintings 39 years later.

鈥淚t is really quite gratifying to see these paintings returned full circle,鈥� said FBI Special Agent Susan Garst, who led the investigation beginning in April 2024.

It was confirmed later that both of Harwood鈥檚 paintings were sold in 2018 by the Scottsdale Auction House in Arizona 鈥� 鈥淎spens鈥� for $93,600 and 鈥淥klahoma Cheyenne鈥� for $52,650, according to the museum. Both were advertised in the Scottsdale Auction House with changed titles, 鈥淔all Landscape鈥� and 鈥淚ndian in a War Bonnet,鈥� and neither were cited in any documentation as the artists鈥� titles.

鈥淭he title of the Joseph Henry Sharp is written on the back (of the canvas), so it鈥檚 a little questionable,鈥� Leherissey said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 40 years later, so I鈥檓 sure they don鈥檛 want to be linked to impropriety. But they should have done their due diligence, honestly.鈥�

Bizarrely, these same two paintings had been stolen before, in March 1977, according to a Taos 近距离内射合集 article from that year.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 know what it is about those two artworks, but it鈥檚 very, very curious,鈥� Leherissey said.

Leherissey noted that the Harwood鈥檚 security system is 鈥渕uch more robust鈥� nowadays.

鈥淲e鈥檙e definitely a different beast than we were in 1985 when we were a small town library with an amazing collection,鈥� she said.

To celebrate 鈥淭he Return of Taos Treasures,鈥� the museum is inviting the public to see the reveal of the stolen paintings at 4:30 p.m. on Friday, June 6, inside the Ellis-Clark Gallery, followed by a screening of 鈥淭he Thief Collector.鈥�