NEWS
metronews.ca Tuesday, February 12, 2013
03
Remai a potential target for art thieves, says expert MORGAN MODJESKI
morgan.modjeski@metronews.ca
With its $20-million collection of Picasso linocuts, the future Remai Art Gallery of Saskatchewan has the potential to become a target for art thieves. According to Anthony Amore, author of Stealing Rembrandts: The Untold Stories of Notorious Art Heists and a leading expert in art theft, the Picasso collection is enough for the Remai to be targeted. “Picasso is the most stolen artist in the world, his works have been stolen more frequently than any other,” said Amore. “The reason that this happens is because if you speak to people from any audience, any background, and you ask them who Picasso is, they’re going to know that he’s an artist and that his works are valuable.” Amore explained the fact the Remai is a new building may serve as a deterrent for some thieves, as new buildings usually come with highValue
Cameco shares down following $168M write-down on its Kintyre uranium mine Cameco has confidence in the long-term value of its
tech security systems, but added when dealing with this kind of art, security is never a guarantee. “If there was an opportunity, they’re going to try to take it,” said Amore. “Nothing is 100 per cent secure. There will always be that risk when you have a Picasso or a Rembrandt or other big-name artists in your facility.” Angela Larson, acting executive director and CEO with the Mendel Art Gallery and interim executive director and CEO with the Remai, said the new gallery would have five times more security than the Mendel, including cameras and security guards in each of the museum’s galleries. “When they did the functional program for the new building, (security) was definitely considered,” said Larson. “That’s when they looked at the type of security system we would need in that building and also the amount of security we would need in the various galleries.” She continued: “Between the guards and the cameras we’re installing, I think our artwork will be secure.” The Remai, which is being built at River Landing in downtown Saskatoon, is scheduled for opening in late 2014 or early 2015. Kintyre project but it’s not economically viable at current uranium prices and had to be written down by $168 million, CEO Tim Gitzel said Monday. He said uranium would have to be at least $67 US per pound “to make that project interesting.” “If you follow the market, you’ve seen others
NEWS
Local art gallery. $20-million Picasso collection likely to attract attention
Linocuts donor, Ellen Remai, foreground, of the Frank and Ellen Remai Foundation, and Jason Aebig, chair of the gallery’s board of directors, at the announcement of the $20-million collection in September. The Remai is getting a lot of attention for the collection of Picasso linocuts, but art-security expert Anthony Amore says these types of paintings are usually targeted by art thieves. JANE CAULFIELD/METRO
— our competitors — using $75 to $90 or $84 or somewhere in that range,” Gitzel said in a conference call. “We wouldn’t dispute those numbers,” he added. “We think something certainly north of where it is today but something in the $60 to $80 range would start to get people
interested in moving the project ahead.” Cameco reported Friday it got an average of $47.62 US per pound for uranium last year, including nearly $50 per pound in the fourth quarter. Gitzel noted that the Kintyre project in Australia was acquired in 2008, prior to the financial meltdown
that hit major economies and three years before an earthquake and tsunami damaged the Fukusima Daiichi electric plant in Japan. “It remains a good project. There are significant resources there that we’re planning on exploiting in the future,” he said. THE CANADIAN PRESS