Stolen Artworks Found In Vancouver

NORTH VANCOUVER, B.C.

Six stolen works by artists including wildlife painter Robert Bateman and A.Y. Jackson of the Group of Seven have been found in this Vancouver suburb.

A woman was walking her dog Sunday when she discovered the artworks worth hundreds of thousands of dollars beside a dumpster, police said.

Bateman's The Dozing Lynx, valued at $170,000, was slightly damaged and had come out of its frame. It was stolen March 31, 1990 from Buckingham Fine Art Ltd. of Markham, Ont., where it was on display.

Two paintings by Jackson were also discovered, alongside works by the Dutch-born 19th-century painter Cornelius Krieghoff and 20th-century artist Jean-Paul Riopelle.

Three paintings by Jackson, each valued at $10,000-$12,000, were stolen June 9, 1990 from Empire Auctions in Ottawa. A work by Krieghoff was stolen at the same time.

Two Krieghoff paintings valued at $40,000 and $95,000 were also stolen from Montreal galleries, one in October 1987 and the other in April 1989.

Police said the paintings are in storage at the North Vancouver detachment and an investigation is underway. A curator from the Vancouver Art Gallery will evaluate the artworks.