It may not be as exciting as the weekend heist of the French Crown jewels from the Louvre, but more than 130 valuable paintings, sculptures, and other artworks have vanished from a multi-million dollar federal collection managed by Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Rebecca Alty’s department, according to a newly released internal audit that points to lax oversight and possible theft.Blacklock's Reporter says auditors found 132 pieces from the Crown’s Indigenous Art Collection could not be located, warning that the department’s failure to track or secure its holdings created “an increased risk of theft.” The missing works are part of a 5,176-piece collection valued at roughly $14.4 million.“Without the ability to monitor the collection there is an increased risk of theft and security breaches related to the collection going undetected by the department,” auditors wrote. .They noted some of the missing works were known to exist but could not be recovered, while others were simply “considered missing.”The report also criticized the department for having “no clear policy framework” for recovering lost or unaccounted-for art. It found that millions of dollars’ worth of pieces were stored in Gatineau, Que., at a privately leased warehouse and a federal facility where “functioning security cameras were not yet in place.”Auditors said no annual independent inspections of the collection had been performed, despite this being a stated requirement. The department, which has been collecting indigenous art since 1965, has never sold any of its works..Between storage costs and staff salaries, the department spends about $1.2 million a year to maintain the collection, plus at least $100,000 annually on new acquisitions. Recent purchases include a $64,000 sculpture by Toronto artist David Ruben Piqtoukun, $32,600 for three inkjet prints by Ottawa photographer Meryl McMaster, $12,500 for a sculpture by Victoria’s Chris Paul, and $9,500 for a print by Winnipeg artist Scott Benesiinaabandan.As recently as 2018, the department planned to print 10,000 copies of a catalogue showcasing the collection. “The department is very committed to making the works in its collection available to Canadians,” wrote art registrar Kevin Gibbs at the time.No explanation has yet been offered for how so many pieces disappeared under the department’s watch.
