On 35th anniversary of Gardner heist, museum prepares for stolen art’s return

BOSTON — In the Dutch room of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, the newly restored 19th-century empty frame that once held Rembrandt’s masterpiece, Storm of Galilee, is returned to the place where thieves ripped it from the wall thirty-five years ago.

The legendary Gardner Heist remains unsolved

Despite a groundbreaking ten-million-dollar reward, in three and a half decades, none of the stolen art has been recovered.

But at the museum, they remain optimistic.

On 35th anniversary of Gardner heist, museum prepares for stolen art’s return

“Thirty-five years. Do you still have hope these paintings, this artwork, will be found and returned to the Gardner?” I asked Gardner Security Director Anthony Amore.

“Absolutely we really do operate in this realm of hope that the paintings will be recovered,” Amore said.

Right now, the museum is embarking on a million-dollar restoration of the Dutch room, the gallery where much of the artwork was stolen.

“When our paintings do come home, they’re coming home to the best possible setting, the ways in which Isabella intended them to be shown,” Gardner Museum Collection Curator Diane Seave Greenwald said.

In the Dutch Room, wall fabric is being replaced, the ornate wooden ceiling, the custom tile floor will soon be cleaned and restored, along with the empty frames.

There’s even a plan for the artwork, once it’s recovered.

“We always try to err on the side of being prepared and ready for that return,” Gardner Museum Conservation Director Holly Salmon said.