Why the 1970s Sparked a Global Wave of Art Heists — and How ‘The Mastermind’ Revisits the Chaos

A new film The Mastermind, starring Josh O’Connor, is shining fresh light on the golden age of art thefts — a chaotic era when stolen masterpieces became the new currency of crime.

The 1970s saw a surge in high-profile art robberies across the world, as paintings by Picasso, Gauguin, Rembrandt, and others were snatched from museums with startling ease. The decade’s obsession with art as wealth — and the crumbling security of underfunded galleries — created the perfect storm for criminals who suddenly saw masterpieces as millions waiting to be moved.

One of the most audacious examples was the 1972 Worcester Art Museum heist in Massachusetts, where armed thieves made off with four valuable paintings, holding students hostage and injuring a guard. Although the works were later recovered, the crime sent shockwaves through the art world and inspired a new wave of cinematic fascination with the “gentleman art thief.”

Director Kelly Reichardt’s The Mastermind — praised by critics for its raw, unglamorous portrayal of crime — revisits this history through the story of JB Mooney (played by O’Connor), a broke art school dropout who plots a doomed museum heist. Unlike Hollywood’s romanticized portrayals, Reichardt’s film strips away the fantasy, showing art crime as messy, desperate, and self-destructive.

Art historian Tom Flynn notes that the rise of such crimes mirrored a booming art market. “It’s a cultural change where we start to see works of art as the equivalent of money,” he said. With museums weakened by budget cuts, and criminals emboldened by lax security, art heists became almost routine — from Canada’s Montreal Museum of Fine Arts robbery in 1972 to Picasso’s stolen works in France in 1976.

Cultural fascination with art robbers — often portrayed as charming rebels outsmarting the establishment — also fed into their myth. But as historian Susan Ronald points out, most were far from masterminds: “The history of art crime is one of opportunists who don’t understand that what they’ve stolen is almost impossible to sell.”

Today, while museum robberies have declined, experts warn that funding cuts and climate change pose new risks to art preservation. Yet, as The Mastermind reminds audiences, the allure of rebellion, greed, and beauty remains a timeless — if dangerous — combination.

The Mastermind hits US cinemas on 17 October and UK screens on 24 October.