Steal This Art Show October 4, 2008

In February 2008 four famous paintings by Monet, Van Gogh, Cezanne, and Degas were stolen from a Zurich Museum. This huge theft, worth about $163 million, started a dialog that was the inspiration for STEAL THIS ART SHOW.

Many questions came to light:

Why would someone steal such an unmarketable item?
Is it strictly the high dollar value that makes these pieces desirable, or is it also some artistic value?
With these high dollar thefts becoming more frequent and highly publicized, why haven’t museums and other institutions implemented better security?
Should artists take more responsibility for protecting their work?

We seek to explore these questions through STEAL THIS ART SHOW, opening at MINT Gallery October 4th, 2008. Steal This Art Show, presented in conjunction with Atlanta Celebrates Photography, is a photography exhibition based on the interpretation of works of art that have been stolen from museums, galleries and other institutions. The act of stealing infamous art is considerably different from other types of theft. Most notably, there is a cloak of secrecy that the thief acquires, along with the work of a master. For Steal This Art Show, artists are asked to recreate a stolen piece of art, hang it in the gallery, and include a theft deterrent system that may prevent it from being stolen. Attendants at the opening are invited to participate by attempting to steal the work. Any artwork successfully stolen may be kept by its thief.

So, literally, come to MINT October 4th and STEAL THS ART SHOW!

Official Website: http://mintgallery.org