Dusty Print in Vacant Milwaukee Apartment Identified as Missing Picasso

A piece of artwork left behind in a vacant Milwaukee apartment has been identified as an original Pablo Picasso etching that vanished from a local gallery more than eight years ago. Landlord Timothy Dertz noticed the print after his tenant moved out. The artwork depicted a bullfighter and was hanging behind a door in a back bedroom, with a heavy layer of dust covering the top of its frame. Its unusual placement prompted Dertz to ask an antique dealer to examine it. The two noticed a signature in green crayon reading “Picasso.” Further investigation identified the work as Torero, a 1949 etching by Pablo Picasso. The artwork had disappeared from Milwaukee’s DeLind Fine Art Appraisals on February 16, 2018, and was then estimated to be worth between $35,000 and $50,000. Dertz gave the print to the Milwaukee Police Department on August 5. Police contacted Bill DeLind, who had co-owned the gallery, and he confirmed that the etching was authentic. DeLind told Smithsonian Magazine that he had not expected to see it again and described its return in what appeared to be perfect condition as astonishing. The gallery’s owners had reported that someone walked into the business during the day in 2018, removed the Picasso from the wall and left without being noticed. DeLind had seen the work earlier that morning, while his late business partner, Michael Goforth, discovered several hours later that it was missing. The gallery had no working security cameras at the time. A reward initially set at $5,000 was later increased to $7,500 and then $10,000. The owners also contacted police and local media around the anniversary of the theft in hopes of generating new leads. Police told WISN-TV that Wisconsin’s statute of limitations for theft and property crimes is usually six years, but said the case remains under investigation. Dertz became anxious after learning the print had been stolen and turned it over to authorities the next morning, according to his girlfriend. DeLind said an insurance company that paid for the lost artwork is now its rightful owner. He nevertheless hopes Torero can eventually be displayed again at the gallery, even temporarily.