DETROIT — A federal judge Thursday delayed deciding whether to seize an allegedly stolen painting by Vincent van Gogh from the Detroit Institute of Arts and giving the artwork to its purported owner in Brazil, a move that buys time for both sides to negotiate a possible settlement.
U.S. District Judge George Caram Steeh held a nearly hourlong hearing in court over the short-term fate of "Liseuse De Romans," also known as "The Novel Reader" or "The Reading Lady.” The purported owner, Brazilian art collector Gustavo Soter, and his art brokerage company, Brokerarte Capital Partners LLC, said the painting was stolen and had been missing for nearly six years until it was discovered recently on display as part of the museum's "Van Gogh in America" exhibition.
Thursday's hearing was scheduled eight days after Steeh blocked DIA officials from moving or hiding the painting, which is on display through Sunday. DIA lawyers, however, counter that the artwork cannot be touched because it is protected by a federal law granting immunity to foreign artwork on display in the United States.
