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Some of the story has been in a feature film but this is the stuff of brilliant documentaries. an excellant look at the modern yet arcane world of art theft and dubious evaluation
To accurately present the myriad details--not only of the heists, but also of the extraordinarily convoluted stings that would recover the stolen art--is a feat of painstaking research. Both were officers in the Garda Síochána (Ireland's police force) and Ned was one of the major players in the recovery in the 1970s. To refresh my memory, I pulled out my copy of "Vermeer" by Arthur Wheelock, Jr., one of the National Gallery of Art's curators and the U.S.'s leading Vermeer scholar, and once again stared at each of the forty color plates. It's both wondrous and chilling, and his mastery of perspective has baffled scholars for close to four hundred years. To catch these criminals and recover the lost art goes beyond conventional detection, to say the least, and Hart does a fine job in elevating the narrative from a mere recitation of facts to a thrilling account of this complex game. Shame on me.
The art theft world is not as straightforward as most people would assume, that is steal the art then sell it. Most of the stolen art, we are informed, are not fenced but used as collateral for other crimes, usually drug dealing and arms procurement. To present this to the reader as a thrilling read as opposed to mere reportage is an even bigger challenge. Of several paintings stolen, The Dutch master Jan Vermeer's "Lady Writing a Letter with Her Maid" (called the Dublin Vermeer) is easily one the most valuable at several hundred million dollars. When I look at them, I get the sensation that I can almost `step into' the picture or that the scene depicted is immediately in front of me. Several years ago, I saw a documentary featuring David Hockney of the "Secret Knowledge" infamy, illustrating his theory that the old masters had used optics such as the primitive versions of the camera obscura to help create their masterpieces.
9, I was stunned by the spectacularly simple technique the innovative master must have used, and for some of us, it will evoke memories of the grade-school technique we were taught on how to draw a perfect circle (bet you want to know now, don't you). The world of art theft is a labyrinth of interconnected criminal factions and the trail of stolen art can easily traverse several countries. I had forgotten that oftentimes, truth is simply.simple.Two of the more astonishing facts the reader learns is that the Dublin Vermeer was stolen twice from the same place, first in 1974 by a gang headed by Rose Dugdale, an IRA supporter and the spoiled daughter of a millionaire, and second by a career criminal, Martin Cahill, twelve years later, and the other is that the two separate cases were solved by a father and his son, Ned Hogan and Liam Hogan. In Chap. When the second heist occurred in 1986, Liam was instrumental in the recovery of the same Vermeer. As to be expected, there are maps, illustrations, color plates, photos, etc., that serve as visual aids to heighten interest.Of particular interest to me was the segue into the discovery by an art conservationist of a Vermeer "secret." Anyone who's seen a Vermeer is amazed by the realism.
I'm not ordinarily predisposed to enjoying true-crime tales, but I found this intriguing and engaging. I think that Hart did a splendid job in both.Whether there was too much background or not enough of the characters' lives, the heists, and the coterie of detectives, depends greatly on one's preference. The other thing that amazes is the perspective (the convergence of parallel lines into a vanishing point). "If we get it back again, we keep it." As father and son look at the recovered Dutch Vermeer, Liam says to his father, "If they lose it again, they can get it back themselves." Ned's reply. "The Irish Game" tells the true stories of two separate art robberies at the palatial Russborough House in Wicklow.
In a story such as this, I consider it vital to be given a surplus of details rather than a mere spattering. His theory was equated to heresy and fueled controversies and numerous critics, but I will admit that I found it logical and utterly believable.
Whereas non-fiction, if not done right, can tend to drag, this real story moves along at a brisk pace due in large part to the story, compelling characters, and smooth pace. Not only is this book a pleasure to read, I walked away learning quite a bit about art techniques, and art theft. Matthew Hart's The Irish Game : A True Story of Crime and Art is an excellent read about Ireland, art, art theft, and criminal investigation. This is a very intiguing non-fiction book about the theft of art by Johannes Vermeer in 1986 from a great house/museum known as Russborough in Ireland. I really enjoyed learning about the Irish police AKA the Garda and the techniques they employed to track the art theft's chief suspect Martin Cahill.I would encourage anyone interested in any of the aforementioned matters, inlcuding but not limited too: art theft, criminal investigative techniques, art techniques, and Ireland, to give this excellent book a try.
This book reads like fiction; but when you come to the end ;you are left with the satisfaction that you've really learned something. When a great piece of art is stolen,we also see that it becomes an international crime. Their mission was to exact a steady taxation of terror from those in power over them. True crime is quite a different matter,and I find that getting into the real mind of a real person,is much more interesting. These small,clandestine bands had no chnce of reversing history. I often wondered why criminals stole these items when they are so easily identifiable and therefore virtually impossible to fence.
This book clearly explains what goes on here. Reading this book, one gets a very real insight into crime in the art world. The author beautifully sums it up with this paragraph; "But the roots of insurrection stretch much farther back in time,into an ancient tradition of secret,peasant societies formed by the dispossessed Gaels in the centuries following the Norman invasion,and persisting into later times. They depended on concealment on the complicity of their fellow Irishmen,who shared their language,race and fate. The way the mind of Cahill works is unveiled as well as the way that the Irish police operate. I don't generally read mystery novels;for the simple reason that when I finish one,I don't really feel that I've learned anything.Sure,there is the suspense, of trying to figure out whodunit;in the final analysis,logic isn't the governing factor;and the author calls the shot.
After all,Irish culture is the result of many centuries of the people fighting the establishment. This old tradition of resistance to authority was too deeply engrained to evaporate with Irish independence,and the job of a policeman in Ireland is always at war with the past." Along with gaining a good insight into Irish crime; we get a real understanding of the nature of crime in the world of priceless art.
If you like true stories about the almost perfect heist involving great works of art, then you'll enjoy this book. A delightful book. And like any good book, it is not only entertaining but teaches you something you didn't know.in this case about the world of crime and art.
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