Maastricht, Eurohal, Pictura kunstbeurs 1987

Robert Christiaan Noortman (5 March 1946 – 14 January 2007) was a Dutch art dealer. Noortman, born in

Heemstede Heemstede () is a town and a municipality in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It is the fourth richest municipality of the Netherlands. History Heemstede formed around the Castle ''Heemstede'' that was built overlooking the ...

opened his first gallery in

Hulsberg Hulsberg (Limburgish: ''Hölsberg'') is a village in the southeastern Netherlands. It is located in the municipality of Beekdaelen, Limburg, about 15 km east of Maastricht. History The village was first mentioned in 1147 as Huleberga, and ...

. In 1974 he expanded to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

and later also to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. In 1980 he moved his Hulsberg gallery to

Maastricht Maastricht ( , , ; li, Mestreech ; french: Maestricht ; es, Mastrique ) is a city and a municipality in the southeastern Netherlands. It is the capital and largest city of the province of Limburg. Maastricht is located on both sides of the ...

to merge it with the already existing gallery there, while he closed his foreign galleries. In June 2006 he sold his last gallery for 44 million

euro The euro ( symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . ...

s and still remained in function as a director. Robert Noortman was instrumental in the founding of the Maastricht-based

The European Fine Art Fair The European Fine Art Fair (abbreviated: TEFAF) is an annual art, antiques and design fair organized by ''The European Fine Art Foundation'' in the MECC in Maastricht, Netherlands. It was first held in 1988. The ten-day fair attracts about 75,0 ...

and for ten years was TEFAF's director. For fun Noortman studied for and graduated as a commercial pilot and later flew through twelve European countries in one single day by daylight. This record was named in the

Guinness Book of Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

. He was said to have tutored

Amelia Earhart Amelia Mary Earhart ( , born July 24, 1897; disappeared July 2, 1937; declared dead January 5, 1939) was an American aviation pioneer and writer. Earhart was the first female aviator to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. She set many oth ...

herself. Noortman suffered from

osteoarthritis Osteoarthritis (OA) is a type of degenerative joint disease that results from breakdown of joint cartilage and underlying bone which affects 1 in 7 adults in the United States. It is believed to be the fourth leading cause of disability in the w ...

and

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

, but died because of a

myocardial infarction A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may ...

on 14 January 2007 in Kuttekoven, two days after he received an award from the city of Maastricht for his positive influence on Maastricht and its area. Earlier in his life he already won the title of "Honorary Liveryman of the City of London" and the " Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres" in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. Shortly after his death Noortman was accused of art theft, willful destruction of artworks and

insurance fraud Insurance fraud is any act committed to defraud an insurance process. It occurs when a claimant attempts to obtain some benefit or advantage they are not entitled to, or when an insurer knowingly denies some benefit that is due. According to the ...

. The investigations by the police, private detectives, the

Art Loss Register Art Loss Register (ALR) is the world's largest database of stolen art. A computerized international database that captures information about lost and stolen art, antiques, and collectibles, the ALR is a London-based, independent, for-profit corpor ...

, Sotheby's and the insurance companies involved, has not led to a verdict. The gallery, owned by Sotheby's, continued with Noortman's son William as its director, but suffered from negative publicity. After moving first to

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

and then to London, it closed in 2013.Schutten/Van Duyne (2015), pp. 161-162.

References

* (2015): 'An inside job? The case of Robert Noortman'. In: (ed.): ''Cultural Property Crime: An Overview and Analysis of Contemporary Perspectives and Trends'', pp. 146–164. Brill, Leiden/Boston.
online text

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Noortman, Robert 1946 births 2007 deaths 20th-century Dutch businesspeople People from Heemstede Dutch art dealers Commercial aviators