19 paintings stolen from art gallery

19 paintings stolen from art gallery

BANDUNG (JP): Police are hunting for 19 paintings by
Indonesian art master Sudjana Kerton that were stolen last Sunday
morning from the Sudjana Kerton Gallery here.

Lt. Col. Zul Azmi of the Bandung police told The Jakarta Post
yesterday that a special team was handling the case.

"We received the report Monday. This is our first experience
of art theft. We are cooperating closely with the Jakarta police
and Interpol," he said. Officers have already questioned a number
of people.

The theft occurred Sunday morning when a housemaid working for
the late painter Sudjana Kerton's family reported a gallery door
was open and some paintings were missing.

American-born Louise Mouzelle Sudjana Kerton, wife of the late
painter, told The Jakarta Post she had no idea who took the 19
paintings.

The stolen canvases, painted between l950 and l980s, include
Adu Ayam (l985),Affandi Makan Semangka (l982), Di Dalam Oplet
(l979), Doger Monyet (l988), Gunung Merapi (l982), Hujan Angin
(1958), Jatuhnya Matador (l963), Potret Keluarga , Sisingaan
(l984), Kerbau dan Burung, Mesra (l963), Cinta, Studio Daumier
(l950), Laki-Laki Suriname (l950), Ship Meadow (l950), Village in
the Valley Pontoise (l950) and Apple Trees (l950).

"They must have been taken by someone who had access to the
gallery. But I don't have anybody to suspect. I really have no
idea," Mrs. Kerton said sadly.

Valued at Rp 600 million, the 19 paintings were among the 120
works in the Sudjana Kerton's exhibition at the Ministry of
Education and Culture's fine art gallery in Jakarta in November
and December last year.

Tjandra Sudjana Kerton, Sudjana's daughter, admitted her
family paid little attention to the security of their gallery,
home to dozens of her father's works and those of other painters.

"Before we held our last exhibition, everything was okay. Only
a few people were interested in my father's paintings. We are now
very alarmed. We must tighten gallery security," Tjandra said.

Born in Nov. 1922, Sudjana was one of Indonesia's pioneers in
the fine art world. He initially worked as an integral part of
the relatively small group of artists who used their talents in
the battle for independence in the 1940s.

He spent most of his life in the United States, the
Netherlands, Spain and France.

Sudjana returned to Indonesia in 1976. His work from the 1980s
and early 1990s is more familiar to Indonesian art aficionados
from his several solo exhibitions and participation in numerous
group shows.

In the current art boom Sudjana's works are highly valued by
collectors. In his latest retrospective exhibition, in Jakarta
last November, a number of paintings sold for between Rp 50
million and Rp 100 million each.

According to Amir Sidharta, art curator of the Museum Pelita
Harapan in Jakarta, Sudjana's works were exhibited in Jakarta in
l980, l984, l985,l988 and in l996. The last exhibition attracted
the most attention.

Amir said it was not surprising Sudjana's works had become the
target of art thieves. In the last few years, works by Indonesian
painters Basuki Abdullah and Raden Saleh, Affandi have all been
stolen.

A.D. Pirous, professor of art at the Bandung Institute of
Technology, said the theft of Kerton's works was prompted by the
increasing demand for high-quality art.

"Indonesian art is now selling in art markets across Asia,
especially in Singapore," said Pirous, also the dean of the
institute's Fine Art Department.

Christie's representative in Indonesia, Deborah C. Iskandar,
said the international auction houses would make every effort to
help trace the paintings.

"We're aware the paintings were stolen and if they (the stolen
paintings) are offered to us we'll do everything we can to get
them back to their rightful owner," Iskandar told The Post
yesterday.

Meanwhile, Indonesia's Interpol bureau has asked for a
detailed report on the paintings from the West Java police.

"We badly need a detailed report on the stolen paintings so we
can send it to our bureaus all over the world," bureau secretary
Brig. Gen. Ahwil Lutan said.

The only way to keep precious art securely is to provide extra
security for it, he said. (raw/bsr/ahy)