The documentary shown at the Silco Theater served as a fundraiser for the Southwest Regional Museum of Art and Art Center

By Mary Alice Murphy

From left are Buck Burns, Olivia Miller, David Van Auker and Rick Johnson.

Victoria Chick of the Southwest Regional Museum of Art and Art Center (SWRMAAC) said the benefit documentary, "The Thief Collector," was being premiered in Silver City to raise money "so we can get a building to house the nearly 1,000 pieces of art of that have been donated to us. They range in dates from the 1830s to contemporary art."

Olivia Miller, Director and Curator of Exhibitions for the University of Arizona Museum of Art, once again visited Silver City, this time to talk about the story of what happened after the recovery of an artwork stolen from the museum the day after Thanksgiving in November 1985.

"This is the story of what happened to the painting after it was returned to the museum," Miller said.

In August 2017, owners of Manzanita Ridge, a used furniture and decorative items store, Buck Burns, Rick Johnson and David Van Auker, were contacted by the nephew of a couple, Jerry and Rita Alter, who had died near Cliff, New Mexico. He wanted them to choose items from the estate that they thought they could sell. The nephew told them at the time he had already taken the "best stuff," so they weren't sure what to expect.

Each chose different areas of the house to look for what they thought was sellable. Van Auker went into the master bedroom. When he closed the door, he saw an abstract painting hanging on the wall, hidden by the door when it was open. He and Burns liked the painting and thought it might look good in a guest house they owned. The partners made a financial offer to the nephew, which was accepted, loaded up what they wanted and planned to return with a U-Haul for the larger pieces.

The painting they placed in the back of the pickup truck, and when they unloaded it at the store, they rested it against a post. A recent arrival in Silver City came into the store, saw the painting and asked if it was a real Willem De Kooning painting. Van Auker said he thought it was a good print. "Then another customer came in and asked me the same thing."

After the third and fourth person asked about it, they wrapped the painting in a blanket and put it in the only lockable room in the store—the bathroom.

Van Auker began doing an internet search, and on about the fourth page of his search, he opened an article—"I don't know what made me open it."—about the 1985 theft of the De Kooning painting from the University of Arizona Museum of Art. The article, from the Tucson News Now in the Aug. 11, 2015 edition, memorialized the theft of 30 years before. It stated that a couple had come into the museum first thing in the morning the day after Thanksgiving. The woman distracted the security guard, while the man cut the De Kooning out of its frame, rolled it up and the couple abruptly left the museum. When the security guard discovered the theft, he tried to catch them, but it was too late. They were gone.

When Van Auker enlarged and printed the photo of the painting and compared it to what they had bought in the estate sale, they realized it was the real thing.

Van Auker, when asked, said they had never even thought about keeping the artwork. "It wasn't ours," Burns echoed.

"I called up the University of Arizona Museum of Art," Van Auker said. "I didn't want them to think I was crazy." He was connected to Miller. He emailed photos of the painting to her, and then didn't hear back from her, so he called the FBI in Albuquerque. The agent "became very interested and told us to find someplace safe for it. I didn't sleep at all that night."

When Burns introduced the documentary, he said: "You will have more questions than answers after you're seen it.

[Author's Note: He was correct. The intriguing documentary moves fast and although it addresses some issues, the motive of the theft remains a mystery.]

Following the showing of the documentary, Burns, Van Auker and Miller served as panelists for questions from the audience.

Miller was asked about funding for the documentary. "The museum gave nothing toward the movie, although they fundraised. A lot of it was paid for through grants. We had a special exhibition of the painting after restoration and conservation. The gallery has been renamed the Manzanita Ridge Gallery," she said to applause from the Silver City audience. "We are waiting until the fall to officially place the painting back in its original frame on the same wall. The Getty Museum restored the painting and attached the cut-out painting back to the bits and pieces left in the frame. It took 2 ½ years of restoration, delayed by the pandemic, including, putting bits of paint that had flaked off in the rolling of the canvas back into their proper places. One restorer, using a dental pick, worked for a year on that detailed process."

Burns noted that none of the people interviewed for the documentary had been paid.

Miller said the Getty Museum had done the restoration pro bono. "We interviewed a conservator, not involved in the restoration, and we learned the low cost to restore the work would have been at least half a million dollars."

Burns said that interest has been shown to turn the story into a feature film. Van Auker said: "We've been approached by others to do a motion picture. I'm sure there will be a movie done."

Van Auker and Burns said they continue to investigate, hoping to find a reason for the theft.

When asked about the value of the painting, Miller said it had been valued at the time of the theft at about $160 million. "It is the most valuable painting in our collection, and it has special value because of this story. The damage is not the first thing you notice, but there is still damage visible. It's part of the painting's story." She said the painting had a tight provenance up until the 30 years it disappeared.

"One of the great things as a result of all of this," Burns said, "was we got to go to the Getty to see the restoration."

Van Auker noted the son of the couple suspected of the original theft, Jerry and Rita Alter, still lives in Silver City. Their daughter died recently in San Francisco.

To a question about how the Alters could fund their multiple yearly trips to faraway places, Burns said: "Who knows? Jerry retired from teaching at 47. She worked as a speech pathologist at Silver Consolidated Schools. But when she died, she left more than $1 million in the bank."

A man in the audience said he was surprised that the nephew, the executor of the estate, hadn't required an appraisal and documentation of the contents of the house.

Van Auker said he, too, was surprised to learn that valuable items, such as a Remington bronze were just given away.

A woman said that she thought the nephew, who was interviewed in the documentary, seemed "sneaky."

Burns said his theory was that the nephew was trying to wipe his hands off culpability. In the documentary the nephew says he loved his aunt and uncle.Van Asker said he had said his aunt was "a crazy bitch."

Burns noted that the placement of the De Kooning painting on the wall behind the door, made it completely visible to them at night when the door was closed. "They could lie in bed and see the painting."

A woman asked if a psych profile had been done on Jerry.

Miller said she didn't know, and the FBI has closed the case.

A man asked if any other items in the home has been cross-checked for being stolen items.

Burns said the FBI told them that they had found nothing else that had been reported stolen.

A woman asked about the delay of the museum calling Van Auker back.

"David called us about 2 p.m. on Thursday," Miller reported. "We started losing our minds. I was told not to meddle, which I took as 'don't call.'"

Van Auker said it dawned on him that he had spoken to only one woman. "Who knows? Maybe she's coming over to kill me, so I called the FBI in Albuquerque."

Miller said she was sure it had seemed forever to the three who had found the painting, but it was actually less than 24 hours before she replied.

Van Auker said he thought the FBI agent might not have believed him, but" he connected me to someone higher up, and I was told to take it somewhere and hide it. We went to a friend's house, but no one was home. We knew an attorney, so we took it to his house. He said bring it in. That was the start of a nightmare. The attorney talked to other attorneys and then called the Museum and told them he was an attorney representing us, which he was not. At the end he locked it in his conference room and wouldn't give it back to us. I threatened to kick the door down. He said, 'Let the museum come get it.' Less than five minutes later, the museum folks showed up with Sheriff's deputies as backup. He told me later that the painting had obsessed him."

A woman asked if the discovery had changed how the three do business.

Burns said it didn't change their methods. "But it made people aware that we want to be fair. And yes, it has changed how we handle estates. We're more careful."

He noted the documentary, "The Thief Collector" is streaming on iTunes and Amazon Prime. "It is also going into a film festival."

Van Auker said "only one person, the first person who saw the painting offered us money for it, but I thought he was kidding."

Miller said when she got the call from the attorney and from the FBI, that complicated things and "then the attorney left a voice message, and so did David. I knew if an attorney was involved, we had to get the university attorney involved. So, it all took longer than it should have. We were told that the sheriff needed to be there when we picked up the painting. It was better if we could all make nice."

Van Auker said when he wasn't getting calls returned, they almost drove the painting to Tucson themselves.

He answered the question about who the attorney was. Another person noted that the attorney is now a judge.

Van Auker also noted that the theft had connected them to the museum, and they are all now good friends and often socialize together.

[Author's Note: To understand some of the background on the theft, to learn a bit more about Jerry and Rita Alter and their frequent foreign trips, the film also mentions a book Jerry wrote, The Cup and the Lip." Stories in it eerily echo not only the painting theft, but other parts of their lives. I recommend you look for the documentary, "The Thief Collector" and watch it. It's about 1 ½ hours, but it moves very quickly and keeps your attention.]