2 THE ART OBSERVER Inside this issue 2/3 £2m worth of art stolen in knifepoint raid 4 The bronzes of Benson Landes 5 Escape from the sun The amazing James Duncan The quiet streets of Martin Murrey’s Manchester 6 The Profile of an Art Collector 7 Ian Jarman exhibition is a sellout 8 Didsbury gallery is a hive of activity 9 New signed limited edition prints to be launched at the Liam Spencer exhibition Exclusive exhibition of sculpure by Dawn Rowland 10 9 Questions for Jiri Borsky 12 International artist is a jewel in the crown 13 Jennie bites the Big Apple 14 Book Revew 15 What’s On Continued from Front Page AN ART DEALER,  his wife and two year old daughter were subjected to a terrifying robbery at their home in Cheadle, Cheshire during the morning of Thursday 3rd May. Ivan Aird, a well-known dealer described how his wife, Louise, answered the door at 7.20am to someone impersonating a postman. She had their two year old daughter, Sabrina, in her arms when the man burst in, pushing her against a wall. She fell to the ground still clutching Sabrina as three more men, one wearing a balaclava, came rushing into the house. Ivan, 41, came rushing down- stairs to see what the commotion was about when the men jumped on him and forced him, face down, to the ground. They tied him up with cable wire and held a knife to his back whilst pressing his head to the floor. They said they were going to murder him and threatened to kill his little daughter if he moved. Whilst the knife wielding attack- er threatened the terrified family, his accomplices ran through the ground floor of the house stealing  prized paintings and drawings by L.S. Lowry. Amongst them were two major oil paintings, ‘The Viaduct’ which had once belonged to the celebrated actor Sir Alec Guinness was valued at £700,000 and ‘Tanker entering The Tyne’ valued at £500,000.   The stolen items included five drawings by Lowry and three paintings by Arthur Delaney. A solid bronze plaque of L.S. Lowry by the sculptor John Blakeley was taken as well as a frame containing Lowry’s palette and brushes. Some of the works were for sale and some were in Mr Aird’s private collection. In total fourteen items were taken worth approximately £2m.   Since being a young boy Ivan has had affectionate memories of L.S. Lowry when the artist would regularly visit the family home from the 1960’s until his death in 1976. George Aird, Ivan’s father, was Lowry’s friend and framer. Some of the stolen works were of sentimental value to Ivan and he hopes to get them back. The gang made its getaway before Ian and Louise could raise the alarm. The police responded very quickly once the alarm was raised and are conducting a very thorough investigation. A forensic squad spent two days combing the house for clues and the Serious Crime Squad (murder Squad) has been brought in, working on the case almost twenty four hours a day. If anyone has any information that could lead to the recovery of these works of art please call the police on  0161 856 2482 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111. £2m worth of art stolen in knifepoint raid THE  ART  OBSERVER Editor Features Wendy Levy Gaynor Lloyd, Jennie Keegan, Jonathan Drage Kelly Moralee, Clare O’Mahoney, Miriam McManners, Edward B Whitlock Advertising Lesley Brush, Business Generation Mobile Number 07815 207609 Published by Wendy J Levy Contemporary Art Ltd 17 Warburton Street, Didsbury, Manchester M20 6WA Tel/Fax 0161 446 4880 Email: wendy@wendyjlevy-art.com www.wendyjlevy-art.com Printed by Messenger Group Design and Artwork by Richard Clare © Wendy J Levy Contemporary Art Ltd THE  ART  OBSERVER WELCOME  to the forth issue of The Art Observer, Issue no.5 will be published in December. We hope you find it of interest and would welcome your feedback by contacting: news@wendyjlevy-art.com June 2007 1