Henry Moore and the Two-Ton Score!

Baker is a little disappointed about gatekeeping and elitism in the art community and wishes everyone would stop freaking out about NFTs — and as usual, Mara is the voice of reason who talks him off the ledge. In short, art is for everyone, damnit! We discuss the life of renowned sculptor, Henry Moore, and we pry into his World War I experience and wonder how it may have really influenced his work, and then Baker gets really excited about tank warfare, though to be clear he does not condone war! We share the story of a sleep-deprived roadtrip wherein Mara and Baker hallucinated deer and big horn sheep and then we dive into the latest news which makes us ask the question; do museums even know what they’ve really lost to art crime? We pause for a Star Wars reference, then it’s onto the crime! We’re impressed by the speed and precision required to steal and dismantle a two ton sculpture in the middle of the night, and then we wrap things up with Baker’s thirst for validation and 5 star reviews on Apple Podcasts.

Episode References

ART
Tube Shelter Perspective, by Henry Moore
Shelter Scene: Bunks and Sleepers, by Henry Moore
Shelterers in the Tube, by Henry Moore
Reclining Figure, by Henry Moore
Rock Drill, by Jacob Epstein
Star Wars Prequel Concept Art Designs, by Doug Chiang

NEWS
PEOPLE ARE STEALING ART AND TURNING IT INTO NFTS | VICE
MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS HOUSTON BREAK-IN: 2 SUSPECTS ESCAPE BY BOAT ON BUFFALO BAYOU | KHOU.COM
WE DON’T KNOW HOW MUCH ART HAS GONE MISSING FROM MUSEUMS | THE NEW YORK TIMES
FRANCE TO RETURN NAZI-LOOTED KLIMT TO RIGHTFUL JEWISH HEIRS | THE JEWISH VOICE
THE NATIONAL LIBRARY HID FOR FOUR YEARS THE THEFT OF AN ORIGINAL WORK BY GALILEO | EL PAIS

Find Us
Instagram: @artcrimepod
Twitter: @artcrimepod
Show Notes and Blog: ARTCRIME .blog
Mara on Instagram: @mjvpaints

The art heist book plot considered “worryingly plausible” by the National Galleries of Scotland

Author Ian Rankin revealed on Twitter that a National Galleries of Scotland (NGS) boss forbid filming in its galleries for the 2012 movie adaptation of Rankin’s 2008 novel, Doors Open.

Doors Open tells the story of three friends who plan a heist to “liberate” works of art from NGS storage. In reaction to a tweet recommending the new Netflix art heist series, Lupin, visual artist and NGS copywriter assistant Greag Mac a’ tSaoir was reminded of the Rankin thriller.

“…I read @Beathhigh’s Doors Open, about a gang robbing the NGS stores and it was like a personalised four hundred page anxiety attack,” tweeted Mac a’tSaoir.

not sure I’d be able. I read @Beathhigh’s Doors Open, about a gang robbing the NGS stores and it was like a personalised four hundred page anxiety attack

— Greag Mac a' tSaoir (@gregmcateer) January 19, 2021

Rankin responded to the @ and revealed that his plot was so good, the NGS took note. “They wouldn’t let us film in Edinburgh – boss of NGS said the plot was worryingly plausible…” tweeted Rankin.

They wouldn’t let us film in Edinburgh – boss of NGS said the plot was worryingly plausible…

— Ian Rankin (@Beathhigh) January 19, 2021

That is high praise for the imagination of Rankin. He created a plot so good, NGS staff had a collective anxiety attack! No doubt there was an internal NGS meeting or two regarding the novel.

In consideration of a future printing of Doors Open, I’d like to recommend the following pull quote for the book’s cover…

“Worryingly plausible!”

Boss, National Galleries of Scotland