Warhol piece among high-priced art stolen in Detroit
A 3-foot-by-3-foot silkscreen Andy Warhol used to make "Flowers" prints was stolen last month, the FBI says.
May 22nd, 2012
08:11 PM ET

Warhol piece among high-priced art stolen in Detroit

FBI agents are trying to determine who stole 19 pieces of high-priced art, including an Andy Warhol silkscreen, from a Detroit business.

The art - worth millions of dollars, according to CNN affiliate WDIV - was taken between April 27 and April 29 from a business owned by an art collector in Detroit’s Corktown neighborhood, the FBI said Tuesday. The agency didn't name the business or the owner.

The collection includes a 1960s silkscreen that Warhol used to make “Flowers” prints, according to the FBI.  The other pieces of art, including paintings and drawings, were done by Larry Rivers, Francesco Clemente, Philip Taaffe, Joseph Beuys and Peter Schuyff.

Investigators suspect that the thief or thieves “may have already crossed state lines, if not left the country, in an effort to sell them,”  FBI spokesman Simon Shaykhet said.

“We’re putting a message out to art dealers, pawn shop owners, and anyone dealing in art to be aware of it,” Shaykhet said.

The art was neither locked up nor on display, the FBI said.

A $5,000 reward is being offered for the pieces’ recovery. They have been entered into the FBI’s national stolen art database.

Up to $6 billion worth of art is stolen each year, according to the FBI.

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Filed under: Art • Crime • Michigan
soundoff (48 Responses)
  1. drap

    Where is Van Goths ear....?

    May 22, 2012 at 8:24 pm | Report abuse |
    • EuphoricCrest

      I know about the VIsigoths and the Ostrogoths but never heard of the Van Goths.

      May 22, 2012 at 11:50 pm | Report abuse |
  2. Van Gogh

    Drap I heer you.

    May 22, 2012 at 8:29 pm | Report abuse |
  3. chrissy

    Cant even imagine why someone having this art in their home and NOT having it insured! Thats just stupid!

    May 22, 2012 at 8:57 pm | Report abuse |
  4. chrissy

    correction, business, not home.

    May 22, 2012 at 8:59 pm | Report abuse |
  5. The Ear

    That's crazy.. crime in Detroit..do they have butlers in Detroit... .?

    May 22, 2012 at 9:20 pm | Report abuse |
  6. chrissy

    @ the ear, might be a few, mostly unemployed i imagine though lmao.

    May 22, 2012 at 9:38 pm | Report abuse |
  7. ©bobcat (in a hat)©

    .

    Jack was sitting when a guy took the seat beside him. The guy was an
    Emotional wreck, pale, hands shaking, moaning in fear. "What's the matter?"
    Jack asked.

    "I've been transferred to Detroit , there's crazy people there. They have a
    Lot of shootings, gangs, race riots, drugs, poor public schools, and the
    Highest crime rate."

    Jack replied, "I've lived in Detroit all my life. It's not as bad as the
    Media says. Find a nice home, go to work, mind your own business and enroll
    Your kids in a nice p rivate school. It's as safe a place as anywhere in the
    World."

    The guy finally relaxed and said, "Thank you. I've been worried to death,
    But if you live there and say it's OK, I'll take your word for it. By the
    Way, what do you do for a living?"

    "Me?" said Jack. "I'm a tail gunner on a Budweiser truck."

    May 22, 2012 at 9:53 pm | Report abuse |
  8. ©bobcat (in a hat)©

    Two guys from Detroit, Michigan die and wake up in hell. The next day, the devil stops to check on them and sees them dressed in parkas, mittens and bomber hats, warming themselves around the fire.

    The devil asks them, "What are you doing? Isn't it hot enough for you?"

    The two guys reply, "Well, you know, we're from Michigan, the land of ice and snow and cold. We're just happy for a chance to warm up a bit, you know."

    The devil decides that these two aren't miserable enough and turns up the heat. The next morning, he stops by again and there they are, still dressed in their parkas, mittens and hats.

    The devil asks them again, "It's awfully hot down here, can't you guys feel that?"

    Again, the guys reply, "Well, like we told you yesterday, we're from Michigan, the land of ice and snow and cold. We're just happy to warm up a little bit, you know."

    The devil gets a little steamed up and he decides to fix the two guys. He cranks the heat up as high as it will go. The people are wailing and screaming everywhere. He stops by the room with the two guys from Detroit and finds them in light jackets and hats, grilling sausage and drinking beer.

    The devil is astonished. "Everyone down here is in abject misery , and you seem to be enjoying yourselves."

    The two Michiganders reply, "Well, ya know, we don't get too much warm weather up there in Detroit, we've just got to have a cookout when the weather is this nice."

    The devil is absolutely furious, he can hardly see straight. Finally, he comes up with an answer. These two love the heat because they have been cold all their lives. He decides to turn all the heat in hell off.

    The next morning, the temperature is below zero, icicles are hanging everywhere, the people are shivering so bad, they are unable to wail, moan or gnash their teeth.

    The devil smiles and heads for the room with the 2 Michiganders. He finds them back in their parkas, mittens and hats. They are jumping up and down and cheering.

    The devil was dumbfounded. "I don't understand. When I turn the heat up, you're happy. Now it's freezing cold, and you're happy. What is wrong with you two?"

    The Michiganders look at the devil in surprise. "Well, don't ya know – if hell froze over, that must mean. The Lions won the Super Bowl!"

    May 22, 2012 at 9:59 pm | Report abuse |
    • Jerry

      But Hell freezes over every winter; it's about 60 miles west of Detroit........

      May 23, 2012 at 12:56 am | Report abuse |
    • ©bobcat (in a hat)©

      That's exactly what I say when people tell me, "When hell freezes over."

      May 23, 2012 at 10:19 am | Report abuse |
  9. ©bobcat (in a hat)©

    At the airport for a business trip, I settled down to wait for the boarding announcement at Gate 35. Then I heard the voice on the public address system saying, "We apologize for the inconvenience, but Delta Flight 570 will board from Gate 41."

    So my family picked up our luggage and carried it over to Gate 41. Not ten minutes later the public address voice told us that Flight 570 would in fact be boarding from Gate 35.

    So, again, we gathered our carry-on luggage and returned to the original gate. Just as we were settling down, the public address voice spoke again: "Thank you for participating in Delta's physical fitness program.

    May 22, 2012 at 10:21 pm | Report abuse |
  10. chrissy

    lmfao @ bobcat, yowsa! The hell freezin over and the lions winnin was the best lol! I always say the earth must be off its axis if they win but yours was better! 🙂

    May 22, 2012 at 10:29 pm | Report abuse |
  11. banasy©

    bob©at, that Hell joke had me laughing so hard, I had tears!
    Well done!

    As for the "art", the whole thing doesn't pass the smell test...

    May 22, 2012 at 10:34 pm | Report abuse |
  12. chrissy

    @ banasy, of course it doesnt, lol theft never does. I dont think it was an inside job though, because the owner didnt have it insured. Stupid move for sure. But hey their stealin everything these days. Someone stold my lawn chairs from my porch. Dumb!?!

    May 22, 2012 at 10:40 pm | Report abuse |
  13. Steve

    Ha, the joke's on the thieves. That wasn't Warhol's art they stole, it was just wallpaper.

    May 22, 2012 at 11:27 pm | Report abuse |
  14. chrissy

    lol @ steve, im sure the owner wished that was true anyway.

    May 22, 2012 at 11:48 pm | Report abuse |
  15. Scottish Mama

    Okay I am going to sell my paint by numbers, any buyers?

    May 22, 2012 at 11:57 pm | Report abuse |
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