Rumaging through some outbuildings on my elderly parents’ farm, I ran across what appears to be an original work by California artist Maurice Braun. The painting can be seen here…sorry for the poor picture quality, but it gives the general idea. View from atop a knoll covered with tawny grass, looking into a small valley, with mountains beyond and a grove of trees in the right foreground. A pretty typical Southern California landscape.
The brush strokes and paint layers are there (i.e., it is a genuine oil,not a print) The artist’s signature appears genuine by comparison to samples available online, it is dated “Mar '38” which is consistant with the time when Braun was active…he died in 1941. A penciled notation on the back reads "16X16 $60. (about 900 of today’s dollars).
The picture came into my parent’s possession some 50 years ago from an aged relative who had some connection with the Southern California arts community. As it happened, they did not like the picture, had only hung it a few times when said relative was visiting, and had in fact forgotten all about it. It now turns out however that some of Braun’s paintings are rather valuable. Most auction houses want a subscription to their services before they’ll give any prices, but I did find reference to one Braun piece that recently sold in Europe for about $5000.
Even more intriguing, I ran across a reference to a couple of paintings missing from a Braun collection that was once the property of the San Diego Unified School District…these paintings are thought to have been given to or taken by employees of the district and are now said to be valued at over $100,000. And as it happens, the long-deceased relative who gave the painting to my parents was, at one time the head librarian for a large SoCal school district…
So…question is, are there any art collectors or connoisseurs among the dopers who might be able to identify the picture, or have some knowledge of its value, or of the general value of Maurice Braun’s works?
‘Given to or taken by’. That might raise some issues. If it was ‘taken’, it might be considered stolen property. Does the school district have to prove it was ‘taken’? Or do you have to prove it was ‘given’? Is there a statute of limitations on stolen property?
A good point and worth considering. One hopes that after all this time it wouldn’t be an issue. Of course it’s unlikely that my picture is actually one of the missing ones, although it’s a lot of fun to imagine “what if”?
postcards, thanks for the suggestion. I’ll try to get a better photo and then contact those folks.
This has turned into a very interesting project. I am by no stretch of the imagination a connoisseur of art, especially the visual arts (I do a little bit better with music and literature). But I’ve been reading up on Maurice Braun and impressionistic work in general and have become quite interested. I’m also developing a strong affection for this particular painting…I’m a sucker for desert scenery anyway, and the work on this one is exquisite. Even if it turns out to be worth a lot of money, I’m strongly tempted to keep it and enjoy it.
SS
It will definitely be an issue, particularly if the painting is as valuable as 100,000. There is no thinking institution that is going to just let that money go. I’m not a lawyer, but I think you would have a lot of difficulty demonstrating rightful ownership.
50 or 60 years after the fact, I would bet that any other party attempting to claim the painting as their own would have a lot harder time trying to prove rightful ownership…
This may be one of those times where possession is indeed 9/10th of the law, a fairly complex subject that Cecil once devoted a Straight Dope column on.
