Maashorst Authorities Suspect
Artwork Was Discarded Along with Large Waste
A work by Andy Warhol (1928-1987), the master of American pop art, was accidentally discarded by authorities in the Netherlands.
On April 26 (local time), CNN reported that on April 24, authorities in the southern Dutch municipality of Maashorst discovered that a silkscreen print by Warhol had gone missing while organizing their collection of artworks. The municipality has requested an independent agency to investigate the incident. The missing piece, created in the 1980s, is a portrait depicting Beatrix, who was the Queen of the Netherlands at the time.
Andy Warhol's 1985 work "Reigning Queens." The topmost portrait is of Beatrix, former Queen of the Netherlands. Wikipedia
Officials believe the artwork was accidentally thrown away along with "large waste," and stated that they do not expect to recover the piece. In addition to Warhol's work, 45 other pieces were lost in the same manner. The total value of the missing artworks is reported to be 22,000 euros (approximately 35 million won).
All of these works had been stored in the basement of a municipal building during renovation, then moved elsewhere without protective measures, and were relocated again after suffering damage from a water leak in 2023. Local media reported that it remains unclear who is responsible for the incident or how such a mistake occurred. According to the investigation report, authorities realized the artworks were missing in November last year and reported the loss to the police, but did not take prompt action.
This is not the first time an artwork has been accidentally discarded. In October last year, at a museum in another region of the Netherlands, an elevator technician mistakenly threw away an artwork designed to look like two empty beer cans, but it was later recovered. The pieces were found in a trash bag, both cans were intact, and after being cleaned, the artwork was put back on display.
In another case, in 2019, the work "Comedian" by Italian contemporary artist Maurizio Cattelan, which consisted of a single banana duct-taped to a wall, became a sensation after being sold for about $120,000 (approximately 168 million won) at an exhibition in Miami, USA. During the exhibition, performance artist David Datuna removed the banana and ate it, calling his act a work titled "Hungry Artist," which sparked controversy. After the incident, the gallery immediately replaced the banana and explained that "the true value of the work lies not in the banana itself, but in the idea." In 2023, when the same piece was exhibited at the Leeum Museum of Art in Seoul, Korea, a university student visitor also ate the banana, saying he was hungry. The museum replaced the banana with a new one and continued the exhibition.
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