The Art Newspaper reports that art thefts are on the rise across North America. Over the past decade, the paper says, international art theft has risen in value from $3 to $6 billion dollars. More on that number in a bit.

My position holds that art theft is actually rare. Opportunities are far more abundant than occurrences of theft. In the US, every twenty-four seconds a car is stolen despite locks, alarms, garages and other security measures. This is because thieves can convert cars into cash. They are stripped for parts which are resold on secondary markets.

Art security is notoriously lax. Valuable items hang on publicly accessible walls. Mark Lugo, an exception rather than the rule, simply pulled works from hotel and gallery walls. But Lugo didn’t try to profit from his ill-gotten gains. He was building a private collection. Since he didn’t steal for profit, Lugo didn’t face a deterrent that stops other thieves. It’s hard to profit from stolen art.

Toyota, GM and Volkswagen each sell over seven million cars a year. That makes it difficult to locate an individual vehicle. And if you consider that vehicle has value even when its chopped into pieces, then you understand why car theft is prevalent – it’s practitioners feel they can make money.

In the art world, great value is contained in fewer items. Print runs might number from a few dozen to a couple hundred. Paintings are literally one-of-a-kind items. It is difficult to move stolen merchandise without attracting attention from police and theft victims. As the Art Newspaper notes, the LAPD’s two man art theft department was able recover more stolen merchandise than any of the twenty-one other departments.

Now about that six billion dollar theft number. The FBI includes fakes and forgeries in the crime of art theft. Given that context I can believe that “theft” is on the rise. Art forgery is as old as the art market. Online auctions are crawling with fakes and this market has greatly expanded over the last decade. The Art Newspaper should have more correctly said, “Art crimes rise across North America.”

August 21 marks the 100th anniversary of the theft of the Mona Lisa. Security was so lax its disappearance was noted a day later when it became apparent that it wasn’t in the hands of a scholar or a photographer.

When the museum opened a week after the theft, a large line of guests queued to see the empty space where the master work was once located. The thin beguiling smile was replaced by four hooks and a square of unfaded paint. It was the century’s first exhibition of conceptual art.

Opportunities for art theft are far greater than occurrences of art theft. If it’s difficult to profit from obscure stolen art, then imagine the daunting task of selling the world’s most famous painting. The thief was able to remove the work undetected. His downfall occurred when he tried to sell it.

As the anniversary nears, there are several great books and articles to mark the event. I encourage you to read at least one article about the theft. It’s a fascinating story and it helps explain how the Mona Lisa was transformed from a 15th Century masterwork to the star of the Louvre.  One hundred years later, long lines still form for a brief gaze at the lady from Florence.

[FT: Who Stole The Mona Lisa] [Gaurdian: The Man Who Stole The Mona Lisa]