The art fire has been quenched but the saga continues! (Tuesday 15 June 2004 #2)

compiled by Susan Hunt

As the dust begins to settle after the Momart Blaze (which began on 24 May and is reported on here), new information surrounding the fire itself and the people directly affected by it has continued to emerge:

Burglary, Arson and Arrest

Firefighters at the scene of the Momart fire; image held here.

It has now been confirmed that the fire itself began in a small unit which contained watches,computers and mobile phones among other things. The blaze spread and engulfed the warehouse which contained an estimated £50 million worth of art. Police officers believe that the smaller unit was broken into before the fire started and a 23-year-old male was arrested on Monday, 7 June in connection with this. He was later released on bail and results of an examination of the site have yet to prove whether the blaze was accidental or if it was purposefully started to destroy evidence of the alleged theft.

Hirst's Charity is safe but Momart may not be

Damien Hirst's Charity; image held here.

Damien Hirst's 22-foot sculpture Charity was among the artworks believed to have been lost in the flames, but it has turned out that it escaped unscathed. It was discovered during investigations of the site in the warehouse yard leaning precariously against an unsafe wall. Momart on the other hand are being threatened with legal action by a number of owners who lost parts of their collection in the inferno, though a spokesperson for the company insists that negligence was not an issue.

Emin suffers more bad press

Tracy Emin's Everyone I Have Ever Slept With installation destroyed in fire; image held here.

Following the destruction of three of her works in the Momart fire, Tracy Emin became the butt of many jokes. Many people publicly laughed at her art and felt the eradication of her work would be no loss to the art world in general. Emin herself was horrified by people's reaction, but unfortunately, just over two weeks after the blaze, she was to be subject to another misfortune. On Tuesday 8 June, a unique work constructed of neon tubing that the artist had made especially for the model Kate Moss was found discarded in a skip in East London. The work itself (which spelt out the words 'Moss Kin') was never collected by Moss, despite the fact that it was made three years ago. It was instead stored by the craftsman who made the glass for the piece, but it was mistakenly dumped when he began to move out of the premises.

Blaze provides inspiration

William Mulhall's portrait of Charles Saatchi; image held here.

In the wake of the loss of over one hundred artworks from Charles Saatchi's private collection in the Momart fire, Irish artist William Mulhall decided to painted a portrait of the man himself. Unveiled last week, this work proved to be no ordinary portrait. Mulhall himself admits that he took his inspiration from news coverage of the fire and also from the work of the rock band Ash and in particular their song Burn Baby Burn. The oil-on-board painting was burned in large sections by Mulhall using a flame-thrower. At its unveiling the artist said of the work, "I am asking myself in this painting about where Saatchi can go now. Will he rise like a Phoenix from the ashes or will he fade into oblivion?"

Mulhall is well known for his celebrity portraits and his other subjects include the likes of Bono, Madonna and Bob Dylan This portrait of Saatchi can now be viewed at the Apollo Gallery, Dublin.

Most recent news items:
• Whose art was that? / World Trade Centre not going anywhere? (Tuesday 15 June 2004)
• "Art art! Art art art!" (can you guess who is responsible for these images??) (Monday 14 June 2004)
• Presidential money shots befall US museums (Friday 11 June 2004 #2)
• Unlikely art college celebrates ten years (Friday 11 June 2004)

For a full list of news items, click here.

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News item 603  I have to say I agree with Circa. I have been working on a projec...
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