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Board Game Leads to Art Discovery of a Lifetime
15 Nov
Summary
- An Indiana man found a valuable painting thanks to a board game.
- Experts identified the artwork as a Martin Johnson Heade painting.
- The Museum of Fine Arts in Houston acquired the masterpiece for $1.25 million.
An Indiana resident stumbled upon a valuable painting, initially used to cover a wall hole, after a board game sparked his curiosity. The artwork, identified by experts in May 1999 as a flower painting by Martin Johnson Heade, was later acquired by the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston for $1.25 million. The owner had purchased the painting with furniture for a nominal sum, unaware of its significant value.
The discovery unfolded after the owner played the board game "Masterpiece" in January 1999, recognizing a similar work by Heade. He reached out to Kennedy Galleries, which handled Heade's art, and submitted images for authentication. The gallery then facilitated the connection with the Houston museum.
The painting, titled "Magnolias on Gold Velvet Cloth" and dated around 1890, was hailed as an important rediscovery. Experts lauded it as a fine example of Heade's oeuvre. The museum swiftly approved the purchase, with an anonymous trustee providing the majority of the funds, and the artwork went on public display on June 2, 1999.
Martin Johnson Heade, a notable artist known for landscapes and flower arrangements, lived in St. Augustine, Florida, in his later years. His magnolia works, depicting blossoms at various stages, are rare, with fewer than 20 known. Their rediscovery is partly attributed to their passage through families who were not always aware of their artistic significance.
