Christie's asked to return RI paintings<\/p>\n
By K. Basrie<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Art curators and relatives of two Indonesian
\nmasters who fear paintings allegedly stolen from the National
\nMuseum include two that have just been withdrawn by Christie's
\nfrom its October auction in Singapore, want further action taken
\nimmediately.<\/p>\n
They have called on the international auction house to hand
\nover any paintings of dubious origin as it could be among the art
\nstolen from the Indonesian government collection.<\/p>\n
Contacted by The Jakarta Post yesterday, the people also
\nsuggested that the Indonesian government, through diplomatic ties
\nand Interpol cooperation, should call on the Singaporean
\nauthorities to help smooth out the process.<\/p>\n
They also hoped the related parties would trace the
\nperpetrators of the alleged theft. They are thought to be a local
\nsyndicate.<\/p>\n
"We're so happy reading the Post's report today that two of
\nthe allegedly stolen paintings are the ones that have been
\nwithdrawn by Christie's from its auction," independent art
\ncurator Jim Supangkat said.<\/p>\n
But, he added quickly: "We really want our government and the
\npolice to make an immediate request to the Singaporean
\nauthorities in order to help us get the paintings back.<\/p>\n
"And I strongly believe that Christie's will do their best to
\nhelp us in order to improve their reputation."<\/p>\n
Moreover, he said: "It's a criminal case in which all the
\nparties involved should work hand in hand to solve."<\/p>\n
The two oil paintings by Indonesian master Raden Basoeki
\nAbdullah and legendary master Raden Sarief Bustaman Saleh,
\nbetter-known as Raden Saleh, are believed to have been among at
\nleast six valuable paintings allegedly stolen from the National
\nMuseum on Jl. Medan Merdeka Barat in Central Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Shortly after a day-long meeting on Friday, Christie's
\nInternational Singapore Pte. Ltd. announced that the two
\npaintings, A Nude by Basoeki Abdullah and Portrait of a Dutch
\nGovernor Wearing the Willems Order by Raden Saleh, were withdrawn
\nfrom its Oct. 6 auction.<\/p>\n
Speaking by phone Friday, Trina Savage, an executive of
\nChristie's Singapore, however, refused to explain the hasty
\nwithdrawal or the current whereabouts of the paintings.<\/p>\n
Nataya Nareerat, widow of the late Basoeki Abdullah, shared
\nJim's view.<\/p>\n
"I simply want the canvases returned to the original owner,
\nthat is to the Jakarta National Museum," she said.<\/p>\n
"To do that, the Indonesian government as well as the police
\nshould approach Christie's and the Singaporean authorities
\nimmediately," said Nataya.<\/p>\n
Wiwin Wardayatmo, Basoeki's former secretary, said that
\nChristie's should be willing to return the paintings to Jakarta
\nas soon as possible.<\/p>\n
"The price of the paintings may be nothing to Christie's but
\nthe pieces mean a lot to the Indonesian people because there's
\nonly one Basoeki Abdullah and one Raden Saleh," she said.<\/p>\n
"The masters never made two similar paintings, so please ...
\ngive us back our national property," begged Wiwin, who is now a
\npainting curator.<\/p>\n
According to the Christie's catalog prepared for the upcoming
\nauction, A Nude is expected to be sold for between S$8,000 and
\nS$12,000 while the price for Portrait of a Dutch Governor Wearing
\nthe Willems Order is between S$100,000 and $150,000.<\/p>\n
The catalog describes A Nude as an undated painting and Raden
\nSaleh's painting as being completed in 1867.<\/p>\n
According to Wiwin, Basoeki's painting of the naked woman was
\ncompleted in 1992, a year before the artist was murdered by young
\nburglars.<\/p>\n
Yesterday responsible parties in Jakarta remained tight-lipped
\nabout the affair.<\/p>\n
Sources said that two of the other four paintings are believed
\nto have been Basoeki's Bunga Mawar Kuning (Yellow Rose) and
\nJanger (a Balinese classic dance).<\/p>\n
According to Duto, Basoeki's assistant, A Nude was originally
\nnamed Berganti Rupa (Changing Face) and should measure 120 cm X
\n80 cm, instead of 116.5 cm X 76.3 cm as described in the
\nChristie's catalog.<\/p>\n
A police source said that most of the six painting have been
\nflown overseas while the suspects are still in this country.<\/p>\n
Christie's announcement of the withdrawal might have disturbed
\nthe Indonesian and Singaporean police efforts to investigate the
\ntheft, the source added.<\/p>\n
According to a preliminary plan, the local police in Singapore
\nwere going to seize the paintings soon after they were hung for
\nviewing at the Hyatt Regency Singapore on Oct. 3, a reliable
\nsource here said.<\/p>",
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