The Matisse dossier follows museum and library thefts, recovery announcements and an FBI operation involving a painting believed to be Odalisque in Red Pants. The São Paulo updates distinguish recovered Matisse works from Portinari works that were still missing at the date of reporting.
9 reports · Source dates: 6 Mar 2006 — 17 Aug 2026
Each entry reflects its source on the stated date. A historical theft report does not mean a work remains missing. Attributions, allegations and decisions remain distinct; this dossier does not authenticate artworks.
Police recovered eight works by Henri Matisse stolen from the Mário de Andrade Library. Five works by Candido Portinari taken in the same robbery remained missing when the report was published.
Police recovered three paintings stolen from a private museum in Italy in March.
Three works were taken during a burglary at a private museum. Their recovery is recorded separately in the archive.
Eight works by Henri Matisse and five by Candido Portinari were taken from the Mário de Andrade Library.
Amsterdam agreed to return Matisse’s Odalisque, A795, to the Stern heirs after a binding opinion found that the 1941 sale to the Stedelijk took place under persecution.
The museum cancelled Travels, a planned display of 160 privately owned paintings, after experts raised authenticity concerns about works listed in the catalogue. The show had advertised paintings attributed to Picasso, Van Gogh and Matisse. Ljubljana police announced an investigation. File photo shows visitors at the museum, Xinhua via The Guardian.
On 20 May 2010, Vjeran Tomic stole Picasso’s Le Pigeon aux petits pois, Matisse’s La Pastorale, Braque’s L’Olivier près de l’Estaque, Modigliani’s La Femme à l’éventail and Léger’s Nature morte aux chandeliers from Paris’s modern art museum. The original article incorrectly says April. Corvez testified that he paid €40,000 for the Léger. Birn agreed to pay €80,000 for the Modigliani and store the others. No reliable confirmation of recovery was found in November 2026. Image shows the Modigliani. See the accompanying court report for sentences and the destruction claim.
Two people were charged with possessing and transporting a painting believed to be Matisse’s stolen Odalisque in Red Pants. Agents said it appeared consistent with the Caracas museum original. This release records allegations at the charging stage.
A report following the 24 February 2006 Chácara do Céu Museum robbery described the arrest of a driver suspected of assisting. Works by Salvador Dalí, Henri Matisse, Claude Monet and Pablo Picasso were stolen. The suspect’s arrest was not a conviction.
