Searching for the Head of a Woman

- Searching for the Head of a Woman

- Prologue

title: searching for the head of a woman

author: Evangelos Triantafyllou

© 2021 Evangelos Triantafyllou

Published by Triantafyllou

https://www.vtrianta.com

tel: +30 6946882840

ISBN: 978-618-00-3391-5

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

Evangelos Triantafyllou

searching for the head of a woman

to Natalia, George, Thanasis and Karolina

Special thanks

I am grateful to my friend Gina Georgiadou for the literary editing, her advice and especially for her patience.

I would also like to express my appreciation to Theodota Markou for text editing.

I warmly thank my friend Dimitris Bitzenis for the book design.

Finally, I would like to thank my wife Karolina for her support, advice and faith in my endeavour.

Disclaimer

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locals, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

Prologue

Darkness. Absolute darkness. It feels like he is floating in a void.

Alex opens his eyes suddenly. Shutting them straight away feeling dizzy. He’s trying to realize what has happened. He blinks his eyes repeatedly to clear his sight. It’s dark. His head hurts. He lifts his hand to the back of his head to locate the source of the pain. His hair is wet. His touch causes pain as he feels the wound.

He closes his eyes. He takes a deep breath, trying to remember.

What happened? Where am I?

He opens his eyes again. He realizes that he is leaning on a wall. As his eyes adapt to the darkness, he sees barrels stacked all around him. The place smells of alcohol.

Am I in a cellar?

He scans the area with his eyes, looking for some light. Nothing.

What day is it? What time is it? Where am I?

Dozens of questions and thoughts flood Alex’s mind. He tries to remember, but the pain interrupts his thoughts.

He hears music and some voices from a distance. City noise. Maybe a bar or a restaurant. He can’t be sure.

Through his glance he tries to identify his surroundings. He feels as though the right side of the space is less dark. He leans forward slowly to take a closer look, but the strong pain stops him. His head hurts terribly…

He sees something dimly in the distance. He must find the strength and courage to approach.

1

10 days ago…

ALEX IS JOGGING, his eyes lingering on the calm sea and the imposing mass of Mount Olympus. The atmosphere is clear today, giving him the sense that he can touch the mountain of the Olympian gods. He returns home, and heads to the bathroom for a shower. He likes to start his day with exercise and jogging.

Fifteen minutes later he prepares his breakfast. A slice of wholemeal bread with a tahini and honey spread and coffee of course. Leaving his mug of coffee on the desk he turns on his computer to read his messages. One of them catches his attention. Subject: ‘The lost painting of Picasso.’ As he reads the message, his phone rings.

“Hello?”

“Good morning. Mr. Alex Evangelou? I am calling from the National Gallery of Athens.”

A phone call from the National Gallery of Athens was not the one he expected to start his day with.

“Yes, that’s me. How can I help you?”

“I’m Angeliki Adamopoulou, director of the National Gallery. We met at the ‘Three wounded works by Parthenis’ event about four years ago.” After the introduction, Ms. Adamopoulou explains to Alex the reason for her call. She has a proposal for him, and she has sent the details via e-mail. Alex listens very carefully. It sounds interesting, so he agrees to meet with her next Monday in her office to discuss further details.

He hangs up and returns to reading his messages. After a while, he turns off the computer, sits down to enjoy his coffee in front of the window with a sea view and put his thoughts in order. The sun’s rays reflect on the buildings across the right side of the city, giving a sense of a ‘white’ city.

Alex lives in an apartment on the east side of Thessaloniki, which is the second largest city in Greece. He is a well-known private investigator of stolen works of art. He is almost 45 years old, having done this job for the past fifteen years. However, his professional career started in computing. He studied computer systems and network security and worked in the sub-directorate of Cybercrime Prosecution which is based in Thessaloniki, in the department of special cases.

He became known as an art crime researcher when he located and returned Picasso’s stolen work ‘The Hairdresser’ to the Georges Pompidou Centre in Paris. This work of art was created in 1911 being declared stolen in 2001. The authorities were offering an enormous amount of money to whoever would recover it. However, the French police reached a dead end after several years of investigation, and the piece was considered lost forever. After the heist, the painting had changed hands over various members of criminal organizations, before being located by Alex and handed over to the Georges Pompidou Centre.

The cases he had investigated were like scripts from police films and formed the basis for his book that was published two years ago, having the title ‘Lost works of art’.

Why now? Why after so many years? What did the director of the National Gallery mean by ‘there is danger’?

Alex returns to his desk and turns his computer back on, browsing through his documents he tries to locate the file on the heist at the National Gallery that took place on January 9, 2012. On that day Picasso’s painting entitled ‘Head of a Woman’ was removed along with another two rare works of art from the National Gallery of Athens.

The case had all the elements of a well-written detective novel and is known in police reports as ‘The Robbery of the Century’. The thief, with a full-face mask and a cutter removed the work from the frame. Despite the activation of the alarm and the guard who tried to catch him, he managed to escape. According to the police, the investigations based on information that had been reported to the Department of Antiquities Prosecution and the Greek Intelligence Service had not yielded any results regarding the identity of the thief and the location of the works of art.

The work entitled ‘Head of a woman’, measuring 56 × 40 cm, was created in 1939 by the Spanish painter and depicts his muse, Dora Maar. A work that, apart from its historical and artistic value, also has great emotional value, as on its back it has a handwritten dedication: ‘For the Greek people, a tribute by Picasso.’ Picasso, having experienced the Spanish Civil War, decided to donate the painting to the Greek people, acknowledging Greeks’ opposition to Nazism and fascism during World War II.

Having been involved in a high-profile heist, it would be impossible to turn a profit on the painting through legitimate channels without alerting the authorities. At the moment, the dominant theory wants the ‘Head of a Woman’ to be stored in the basement of the villa of a rich Greek who placed the order for the theft.

The proposal to Alex by the director of the National Gallery of Athens is part of the effort to keep up the search; to find Picasso’s painting and the other two works of art that had the same fate: the ‘Stammer Windmill’ of 1905 from the first period of the Dutch painter Piet Mondrian, as well as a religious sketch by Italian Mannerist artist Guglielmo Caccia. The aim is to locate and return them to the recently refurbished National Gallery of Athens, which was inaugurated at the events for March 25, 2021, on the 200th anniversary of the Greek Revolution of 1821.

It’s ten o’clock. I think it’s a good time to call Sofia.

Alex rings Sofia and invites her for lunch to one of the well-known restaurants in Thessaloniki, to discuss the prospect of a new collaboration. Sofia accepts right away, and Alex is glad to have the opportunity to meet her again.

Sofia Rapti is a writer and a professor of art history at the Department of Fine and Applied Arts of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Alex had cooperated with her in the past for two cases of stolen works of art. He found her deep knowledge of art history very useful for his work.

Sofia’s interest in works of art began when she was in high school. As part of the school’s career program, an art historian from the university had come to present the conditions and prospects of working in the field of fine arts. Sofia at once realized that art and works of art would become her life. Having received her degree with honours from the Department of Philosophy and Pedagogy at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, she was awarded a scholarship from the Vassilis and Elizas Goulandri Foundation for postgraduate studies in the UK. She completed her Masters and PHD studies in London. Upon her return to Thessaloniki, she successfully claimed a teaching position at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.

***

Three hours later, Alex is at the restaurant waiting for Sofia. He has requested a table by the window, facing the sea. The light of the sunny day floods the space. He is wearing an off-white turtleneck sweater, dark blue jeans, and a blue jacket.

It’s very hot. The sun is so bright today, Alex thinks, already regretting his choice of shirt.

He feels a bit uncomfortable, as it’s the first time, he will be meeting Sofia in a place other than her office at the university. During the two years of their teamwork, their relationship remained strictly professional.

I hope this time our discussion will be more relaxed. I like this woman and not only as an art history professor.

Sofia is a charming woman. Unbound, successful but with an unknown personal life to Alex. His thoughts are interrupted by her arrival. The woman approaches the table and Alex gets up to offer her a seat. She is wearing a white shirt and a green skirt that stops just above her knees. She is simply dressed, but her clothes flatter her lean, fit body with her long and slender limbs. She practices martial arts, which gives her tremendous self-control. Sofia is a natural beauty. Brunette with vivid blue-green eyes. Her face has strong features, which she emphasizes using light makeup.

Alex is fascinated by her appearance and is looking for the right words to discreetly express his admiration.

“Are you ready to order?”

The waiter’s voice snaps him out of his intricate thoughts and allows him to suggest certain meal options to Sofia.

Twenty minutes later they are enjoying their meal accompanied by a bottle of white Malagousia wine which he chose. Their conversation, in a very relaxed and warm atmosphere, allows them to talk about their lives and their interests. At the end of the meal, Alex proposes Sofia assists him in his new assignment. He gives details of the case as well as his upcoming meeting with the director of the National Gallery of Athens.

Sofia is aware of the ‘Robbery of the Century’ and the lost work of Picasso. She has talked about the history of that painting many times in her lectures.

“Did you know that Dora Maar, apart from being the most influential of Picasso’s muses, was a surrealist photographer, a painter, and a poet?”

Alex shakes his head and Sofia gets the chance to make a small lecture about the life of Dora Maar. They met in 1936 in the famous Parisian Cafe des Deux Magots, and she became his companion, muse, and inspiration. He was 54 years old at that time, and she was only 29. In the nine years of their stormy relationship, Picasso created many portraits of her, using his characteristic cubist technique.

Dora Maar became his model for many of his famous works, such as ‘Dora and the Minotaur’, of 1936, ‘Dora Maar with Green Nails’, of 1936, ‘Portrait de Dora Maar with a Crown of Flowers’ of 1937, ‘Woman With Straw Hat On Floral Background’ of 1938 and numerous more. She influenced Picasso in one of his most creative periods. She also recorded with her camera the different stages of his life work ‘Guernica’, a project that is currently in Spain’s national museum Reina Sofía in Madrid. After the war, Picasso abandoned her for another young woman, Françoise Gilot.

The Georges Pompidou Centre inaugurated the ‘Dora Maar exhibition’ in June 2019, trying to answer the question ‘Who, Dora Maar really is?’, illuminating the life and work of the mysterious Picasso muse and restoring her place in art, where she left an indelible mark.

Alex listens with a great interest.

“Oh. I’m sorry. I got carried away there for a while and took on the role of the professor,” Sofia says with her sweet voice.

“It’s a pleasure listening to you. It’s all very interesting and you have a gift to attract the attention of your listener. I’m sure that your students enjoy your lectures a lot.”

Sofia smiles and feels that the slight blush on her cheeks is not just from the wine. She likes Alex’s flirting.

“Your turn now. Would you like to give me more details about the robbery?”

Alex opens the folder with the files from the search he conducted nine years ago. According to the data, it was around 04.45 in the early hours of January 9, 2012, when the two perpetrators broke into the National Gallery after distracting the guard by activating another alarm. The perpetrators seemed to have known details about the exhibits and the site, having targeted specific works. The tall man with the full-face mask and his accomplice executed their plan perfectly. The tall perpetrator managed to enter the interior of the Gallery, violating a balcony door on the ground floor of the building. His movements were recorded by the security cameras of the Gallery. He took the stairs leading to the basement and with a cutter removed the works of art from their frames.

It’s worth noting that during the examination of the balcony door’s lock, from where the perpetrator entered, it emerged that it had not been violated! Therefore, the perpetrator either had a key, or was a ‘professional’ in unlocking locks; a sign that could lead to his identity. Given that no evidence was found linking any of the 105 employees of the Gallery to the theft, the investigators concluded that the perpetrator knew well how to open sealed doors.

According to the information published by the Antiquities Prosecution Department and the National Intelligence Service that undertook the case, five footprints were found on that balcony, but no evidence emerged. Twelve DNA samples were taken from the site, which have not been identified to date in order to assist the investigation. Also, the scanning of mobile phones in the area, as well as phone monitoring of the suspects, did not bring any result.

Nine years after ‘The Robbery of the Century’, the culprits failed to sell the work. In the illegal market, the Picasso painting went on sale for a price close to 20 million dollars. Despite the interest, no buyer was found, as the work has a serious drawback: it has been stolen from the National Gallery of Athens and not from a private collection, which means that the buyer could acquire it, but could not exhibit it.

“Furthermore,” Alex adds, “I have some unofficial data, which, however, have not been confirmed by the police authorities.”

Alex believes that the theft could have been prevented if more attention had been paid to the two alarms that were activated earlier that day. The first at 20.00 on Sunday night and the second a little later. Although the guard called the security company and the police that both went to the Gallery, the alarm signals were not given any attention and were attributed to be birds (!) which had hit the windows, triggering the activation. In retrospect, the police officers assessed that these were either distractions by the perpetrators, or simply their failed attempts.

Finally, at around 04.45 in the morning, the alarm was activated again and the guard who was on the ground floor of the building reacted lazily, influenced by the previous times. He went to the main hall of the National Gallery, where he saw the perpetrator trying to get another painting. According to him, the man did not seem to be holding a weapon other than the cutter and as soon as he saw him, he threw one of the paintings he was holding and ran to leave from the same place that he had entered the Gallery. The guard chased him, but could not stop him, and so the perpetrator disappeared in a vehicle driven by his accomplice. There were some other scenarios and information but they proved inaccurate.

“The police authorities,” Alex added, “had already come quite close to various suspects, but without results. The case of the stolen works from the National Gallery has not yet been dismissed and neither will it be, as it’s a big wound in the reputation of both the Gallery and the police authorities.”

Almost three hours had passed since they arrived at the restaurant and after having their dessert, they decided to leave and renew their appointment for next week.

Monday morning

Alex arrives at Eleftherios Venizelos Airport and gets a taxi to the main building of the National Gallery–Alexandros Soutsos Museum, located on Vassileos Konstantinou Street in the centre of Athens. The building was designed in 1964 during the beginning of modernism, by the professors of Architecture Pavlos Mylonas and Dimitris Fatouros. Over the years many works of art were added to the collection and the building became inadequate. In March 2013 it was closed for a major renovation and reopened in March 2021 with new permanent collections and additional exhibition spaces.

Alex arrives at the reception hall, where in addition to the ticket office and the cloakroom, the digital information lounge is also situated. He approaches the front desk to confirm his appointment with Ms. Adamopoulou and asks for directions to her office.

She is waiting for him outside her office. An elegant woman with a warm, welcoming smile on her face. She is wearing a black skirt and a scarf in a bright pink colour. A pink rose shaped jewellery on her lapel beautifully complements her clothing set.

Angeliki Adamopoulou is a writer and art historian. For the last few years, she has been the director of the National Gallery of Athens. After the introductions and the serving of coffee by her secretary, she takes the floor to explain her proposal for their cooperation.

“Our time is precious, and I’ll not refer to the events of January 9th, 2012, nor to the invaluable emotional values of the works. You know very well that the case is not closed for us, and we always hoped that the works of art would return to the National Gallery. Recently, new facts changed our approach to having the works of art return to us.”

The director opens a large folder and passes two photos to Alex.

“A few days ago, I received an envelope with a letter and two photos, which have been verified by the investigation department, as to their authenticity.”

The photos depict Picasso’s work ‘The Head of a Woman’ next to the front story of the newspaper ‘Kathimerini’. One photo shows the back of the painting with Picasso’s dedication. The second photo has the painting on the newspaper and the date ‘February 21, 2021’ is underlined, to prove that the photo is recent. Ms. Adamopoulou states that as far as she can see, the paintings don’t seem to have suffered any damage.

In the letter, the unknown sender expresses his intention to return the work under certain conditions. As clear as his conditions might be, so mysterious are his reasons and motives, behind his willingness to return the painting to the National Gallery become.

The mysterious sender has hidden the work in a place which will become known to the person who manages to solve a particular puzzle he created. Words or numbers are answers to specific questions of the puzzle. The location of the painting will be revealed only to the one that will solve the puzzle that is hosted on a website where the answers should be posted.

“But there is a risk that everything will be lost,” says Ms. Adamopoulou and refers to the rest of the letter. “The mysterious sender threatens that in case police authorities get involved, or an attempt is made to hack or track down the website, this will disappear along with the only chance we have until now to find the stolen paintings.”

What is the motivation for returning the painting? Alex wonders.

“We can’t know or understand at this time the motives of the unknown,” says the director, as though reading his thoughts.

“Beyond doubt, the situation is not clear, and under any other circumstances, we would not agree to participate in such a game. But we are convinced that this stranger has the painting, and we want to recover it at all costs.

In the letter, no reference is made to the other two works that were stolen the same day. So, our search focuses on Picasso’s ‘Head of a Woman’ for now, with the hope that the other works will be found as well.”

A few seconds of silence followed and Ms. Adamopoulou continues “The Museum’s Board decided not to publicize the whole issue and to address specific investigators who have experience in art crime.”

“Can I have a copy of the letter and the photos?” Alex asks.

“Of course. We have prepared a folder for you. I should also mention that the same search has been assigned to two other investigators; our goal is to recover the lost painting at any cost.”

***

A few kilometres away, a middle-aged man is sitting at his desk. He is drinking his afternoon tea and listening to classical music from the record player situated on a shelf next to his wooden desk, which, like the rest of the furniture, is an antique. On the desk, he has a classical black wired telephone and an open laptop.

He is holding two pictures with Picasso’s painting ‘Head of a Woman’.

Let’s hope everything will go as planned.

A ringing sound from his computer interrupts his thoughts. The incoming call has gone through four different servers before ending up on his computer, making it impossible to track. Thus, both caller and recipient are protected by their anonymity. The man doesn’t understand how all this works but trusts the young hacker. He has worked with him many times and admires his knowledge and skills in new technologies.

“Good evening,” a female voice says.

“Good evening,” replies the man who calls himself ‘Maestro’. Like a music conductor, he directs the actions of his collaborators for a successful result of the missions he undertakes. His clients who ask for confidential services are usually rich and famous. He knows how to protect himself and his customers. Police authorities have never been able to find any evidence of his involvement in illegal activities.

“I called to inform you that the investigation has officially started.”

“Fine. Keep me posted,” says Maestro and hangs up. He had organized the operation and all the pieces had been placed on the chessboard. Now all he had to do was overseen the outcome of the events.

***

With the folder in hand, Alex leaves the National Gallery and heads to the airport. He is looking forward to returning to Thessaloniki, meeting Sofia and starting the investigation. He has already identified the first clue of the puzzle.

Alex decides that you should help in this investigation. He knows that since you are reading this book you love crime stories. So, in this book you are given the opportunity to actively participate in the investigation’s elucidation.

In every section, which is also a step of the search, clues will be collected by Alex and Sofia, as well as by you. Your help is very important since you are the ones who at every entity will have to find the hidden word, phrase, date, number etc, which in turn will be used to unlock the webpage that will lead to the lost work of art.

In every step, Alex and Sofia will help you with the collection of data, but you mustn’t wait for them to always give you the answer. Surely, their comments and indications will be helpful but they will not be obvious towards the finding of clues.

To solve the mystery, you will need blank paper -available at the end of the book-, observation, internet search, and of course an inquisitive and creative mind.

Are you ready?

First Clue

The first clue you need to find is the date of the inscription on the back of Picasso’s painting ‘Head of a Woman’. You may need to do a quick internet search to find it. Once you find it you can post it on the game website and proceed to the next stage of the search.

URL: https://vtrianta.com/picasso/index_EN.html

You can continue your search without having found any clues. You can go back and review the data you have collected as many times as needed. The goal is to complete the puzzle to unlock the website.

You can also use a smartphone or tablet and by installing the appropriate application you can decode the information that is ‘hidden’ behind the QR Code.

2

ALEX IS SURE on how to begin the investigation. The photo of Picasso’s painting, accompanied by the newspaper, reminds him of the theft in March 2020 from the Museum Singer Laren that is located outside Amsterdam. The museum was closed on the day of the theft due to COVID-19.

Alex rings Sofia.

“Good evening. Can we meet at my house or at your office this afternoon to examine some new information?”

“Yes. How about six in the afternoon at your place?” Sofia answers. Alex gives her the directions to his home and hangs up with a smile on his face. He likes that Sofia is kind and positive to his suggestions.

A few hours later he welcomes her to his house with a warm smile and leads her to the living room. It’s a very bright spacious room with minimal furniture. On one side it has a large window and a balcony door, leading to a beautiful terrace. The sea view is fantastic. The sun at this time is low, bathing the room with ample light. On the wall to the left two paintings in shades of blue are hung and on the right wall there are quite a few photos.

“You took these photos? I did not know that you are also a photographer,” says Sofia.

“Amateur photographer,” Alex replies. “For me, it’s a way of expression. I like spontaneous photos and I prefer to capture details from nature and urban landscape.”

They are from Thessaloniki’s seafront. He gives Sofia the time she needs to look at the pictures and suggests making coffee.

“Black espresso with a bit of milk?” Alex asks. In reality, he knows how she likes her coffee; he just wanted a confirmation. Sofia nods and smiles.

She examines him as he moves away from her. He is tall, dark. Simply dressed in sportswear, he has a lean, but fit body, as he likes to jog and swim regularly.

I like that he is observant.

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