The dispute over Vincent van Gogh novel reader (The novel reader, 1888) was amicably resolved by parties claiming rightful ownership of the work. The loser in the case could be the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA), which an appeals court ordered in January to keep the painting pending the resolution of the ownership dispute – it had been loaned to the museum for its blockbuster Van Gogh in America exhibition which closed on January 22.
A museum spokesperson told the Associated press that he had spent over $100,000 on his legal defense in the case. He is also asking the appeals court to declare his late January injunction “null and void” so that it cannot be cited as precedent in future litigation. The federal Immunity from Judicial Seizure Actwhich governs international loans of works of art to American museums, stipulates that “no court in the United States […] may issue or enforce any legal process” to affect the “custody or control” of a work of art loaned to a US museum. The law is seen as crucial to securing loans of works that may be subject to litigation or restitution claims.
Brokerarte Capital Partners, the Miami-based art brokerage firm of Brazilian collector Gustavo Soter, had purchased The novel reader in 2017 for $3.7 million from Torrealba Holdings, a company owned by Brazilian thoroughbred horse collector Goncalo Borges Torrealba. Brokerarte then loaned the painting to an unnamed third party, who “got away” with it, as Soter’s initial complaint stated. He had lost track of the painting until it was on public display at the DIA in Van Gogh in America last fall, leading to his trial in january. The work’s wall tag uniquely identified the lender as a private collection in São Paulo.
“In accordance with the confidential settlement, Brokerarte is no longer seeking an injunction, and therefore this appeal is moot,” Soter’s attorneys wrote in a March 13 court filing.
The identity of the mysterious escaped party and the ultimate fate of The novel reader, are unknown. Soter’s attorneys did not respond to a request for comment.
