Romanticisation of criminality—and gibberish—aside, art has aesthetic, emotional and monetary value, and where there is value there is greed. Little surprise then that India’s art community was shaken up when SH Raza’s 1992 painting Nature, valued at around ₹2.5 crore, reportedly went missing from Astaguru’s warehouse in Mumbai.
The auction house has filed a police complaint, according to a report in the Times of India on September 11. The painting was put up by its owner Indra Veer for auctioning in 2020, and was last seen in March 2022. The case has put the spotlight on the safety of high-value art, even as the market for Indian art soars. According to the 2024 Hurun India Art List, sales by the top 50 artists reached a record-breaking ₹301 crore, a 19%increase from 2023.
Demand is high, with 92% of featured artists seeing a rise in sales value.
Artist Paresh Maity says, “When any work of art, which has the power to bring joy and delight to countless individuals, is stolen, it generates a shockwave of disbelief throughout the community.”
Harsh Goenka, chairperson of RPG Enterprises, is a fan of Raza and the proud owner of a piece by the artist. Goenka calls the theft “unfortunate” not just from a financial perspective, but an emotional one as well. “Art is like any other valuable asset and is very vulnerable to theft. However, due to the fact that they are unique individual creations, the loss is more than just monetary,” he says. Naturally, galleries are relooking at their safety protocols.
Minal Vazirani, cofounder of the auction house Saffronart, says, “Something like this shakes you up. Maybe we need to look a little more closely at processes, procedures and physical locations. We have to relook at things and become better.”
Sunaina Anand, founder of Art Alive Gallery in Delhi, seconds it and adds that they are now more conscious of security.
“During exhibitions, it is mandatory for our core team to be in the vicinity of art works to safeguard them from any kind of damage. With technology, it is possible to do remote management of security”
The three biggest threats to the safety of art in storage or exhibition are theft and vandalism, often involving sophisticated planning and execution; environmental damage, that can be due to improper storage; and human error like mishandling of works. Of late, art has been frequently targeted, especially in Europe. In 2022, 38 environmental protests were held in museums.
Tomato soup was hurled at Vincent van Gogh’s Sunflowers and mashed potatoes were thrown at Monet’s Haystacks. Not even the Mona Lisa was spared—she got a taste of pumpkin soup at the Louvre. Thankfully, all these paintings were safe behind glass.
Protecting art
Security guards, CCTV, access control, alarm systems, environmental controls and insurance are non-negotiable to secure high-value art works, says Jennifer Harvey, group CEO of the logistics company Crown Worldwide Group, which stores and transports art and whose clients include high-net worth art collectors, galleries and exhibitors.
Radha Iyer, assistant general manager of relocations, world mobility and fine art at Crown, who handles its India operations, says art needs to be centrally monitored. “This team is responsible for addressing any issues, ensuring that nothing falls through the cracks,” says Iyer.
Rasika Kajaria, founder of the art gallery Exhibit 320 in Delhi, says they have multiple cameras that are continuously manned, capturing every angle, especially the entrance and exit in storage areas; security staff and climate-controlled storage units.
It isn’t just thievery that the fraternity needs to protect art from. Indian summers and monsoons are not friends of art. Fungus and moisture are big offenders. Says Harvey:“It is mandatory in our company to update the daily record of humidity level. We have CCTV cameras and 24×7 security. Our vault is air conditioned, temperature-controlled and has a Novec fire-suppression system installed. The vault can also resist fire for many hours.”
Goenka, who has a substantial collection of art, says, “For the Mumbai weather, we have deployed dehumidifiers. Art is not something you can just buy and forget about. You need to put in some discipline to maintain art works, particularly the mixed media works.”
“Art is like any other valuable asset and is vulnerable to theft. But as they are unique individual creations, the loss is more than just monetary”
Insurance, insurance, insurance
A must-have for anyone who deals with high-value art is insurance. “Insurance, insurance, insurance—I cannot stress on it enough,” says Kajaria, who has been using Sonnen Insurance Broking Services in Delhi to insure art pieces.
Vazirani says Saffronart works with insurers in India as well as globally. Srabasti Dhali, national manager– private client group & personal property at Tata AIG General Insurance, says art houses must insure pieces on-site, in storage and in transit.
“Insurance for art works is generally on all-risk basis, protecting against loss due to theft, fire, floods and handling accidents. Such assurance is vital for maintaining a reputable standing in the art market, as a single mishap can jeopardise an auction house’s reputation and viability,” says Dhali.
That is partly why stocktaking is important. “It is a more complex process than just saying we do stocktaking every six weeks,” says Vazirani, “You don’t want to get into a situation where you are wrapping and unwrapping big works on a continuous basis. It really is about making sure you have got procedures in place for the physical stocktaking of the works. It is critical.”
Liability typically begins when an art work leaves the owner (artist or seller) and continues until it is sold or returned. In case of theft, liability depends on the contract between the art owner and the storage facility or auction house. “Generally, the facility may be liable if negligence can be proven. However, insurance does play a crucial role in mitigating losses. All high-value art has to be insured to cover such risks,” says Iyer.
Recently, a child accidentally broke a rare, 3,500-year-old jug at the Hecht Museum in Israel. The jug had been displayed without a case. Maity says while some events are unfortunate, it should not make artists nervous about showcasing their work in public.
“I prioritise offering my work to known and important people because I trust that they will handle and display the pieces with the utmost care and professionalism,” he says, adding that he meticulously numbers his works, so that he can track each piece and maintain a comprehensive record.
Goenka says that as far as possible, he tries to display art at his homes and office spaces. Otherwise, it is kept in storage. “In the past, whenever we had public exhibitions, we handled the art logistics ourselves,” says Goenka.
“In case of loans for exhibitions, the art works are fully insured by the loanee, and we assess their protocols before we lend them.” Anand says they ensure strict security during public exhibition of works.
“It is mandatory for a core team to be in the vicinity of art works to safeguard them from any kind of damage. And with technology, it is possible to do remote management of security. We always consult specialised security management companies.”
That said, there are still blind spots. Kajaria says that in India, especially at art fairs, extensive security is not provided by organisers, and they have to trust the “educated audience”. If the work is fragile, they encase it in glass.
“Insurance for art works is generally on an all-risk basis, protecting against theft, fire, floods, and handling accidents. This coverage is critical, as it not only safeguards against financial losses but also builds trust with art owners and buyers”
Brush with crime
The theft of the Raza painting was discovered close to an auction the work was to feature in. British auction house Christie’s, too, was hacked at the most inopportune time, right before the New York Auction Week. (Christie’s, Sotheby’s and Astaguru declined to comment for the story.)
Establishing a contingency plan before any significant event is key.
“If you experience a disruption, acting swiftly to notify authorities and affected parties, while immediately securing any remaining assets, is essential, says Kajaria. The silver lining, says Vazirani, is that the art fraternity in India is interconnected. Reselling a stolen art work, like the Raza, is not easy. “If you resell a work, particularly in a public auction, it is not something that would just go by unnoticed.” Clearly not all art thieves get their way.
