Four artworks recovered from the 1MDB scandal have gone on public view in Malaysia for the first time, offering a modest but pointed reminder of one of the largest financial frauds in modern history.
The works—by Picasso, Miró, Balthus and Maurice Utrillo—were unveiled Wednesday at the headquarters of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission in Putrajaya, according to the South China Morning Post. They had been repatriated from New York last month after being traced through Sotheby’s and shipped back to Malaysia on April 14.
The four paintings are Joan Miró’s Composition (1953), Maurice Utrillo’s Maison de rendez-vous de chasse de Henri IV, rue Saint-Vincent, Montmartre (1934), Balthus’s Etude pour femme couchée (1948), and Pablo Picasso’s L’Ecuyere et les clowns (1961). Together, they are estimated at about $198,125, a tiny figure next to the billions allegedly stolen from 1Malaysia Development Berhad, the state investment fund at the center of the scandal.
Still, Malaysian officials framed the display less as an art event than as an act of restitution. “This is a betrayal of the people’s money,” MACC chief commissioner Azam Baki told reporters, according to SCMP. “No matter how large the amount stolen through this scandal, every cent belonging to the people must be returned.”
The 1MDB scandal has long had an art-market afterlife. US prosecutors have said more than $4.5 billion was diverted from the fund between 2009 and 2014, with money routed into real estate, jewelry, a superyacht, Hollywood financing, and trophy works of art. ARTnews has previously reported that Jho Low, the fugitive financier accused by US authorities of helping mastermind the scheme, was once known for placing major bids at auction, including $43.5 million for Jean-Michel Basquiat’s Dustheads (1982) at Christie’s New York in 2013 and $53.9 million for Monet’s Nymphéas (1906) at Sotheby’s London in 2014.
The latest four works are tied to Jasmine Loo Ai Swan, a former 1MDB lawyer and Low associate who returned to Malaysia in 2023 and has since cooperated with authorities. US officials previously reached an agreement with Loo to recover Picasso’s Trois femmes nues et buste d’homme (1969), which federal prosecutors said she bought at Christie’s in 2014 using misappropriated 1MDB funds from a Goldman Sachs-underwritten bond sale.
The recovered paintings are only part of the broader art trail. Malaysia is still pursuing eight other artworks linked to the scandal, including pieces by Henri Matisse, Alexander Calder, Salvador Dalí, and another Picasso, according to SCMP. Authorities are also pursuing proceeds from the sale of Monet’s Vétheuil au Soleil, which was sold in Switzerland for around €25.2 million, with those funds now under seizure proceedings in the United States.
In June 2024, the U.S. Justice Department reached an agreement with Low, members of his family, and trust entities he established to recover more than $100 million in assets, including works by Andy Warhol and Claude Monet. ARTnews reported at the time that the Warhol was Colored Campbell’s Soup Can (Emerald Green), 1965, and the Monet was Vétheuil au Soleil (1901).
Other 1MDB-linked works have already been converted back into cash. In September, four works surrendered to the U.S. Department of Justice, including pieces by Basquiat, Picasso, and Diane Arbus, sold for about $36 million in an online auction conducted by the U.S. Marshals Service. Basquiat’s Red Man One (1982) alone brought $22 million, while another Basquiat, Self Portrait (1982), sold for $8.3 million.
For now, the four works shown in Putrajaya are expected to be handed over to Malaysia’s National Art Gallery. Azam, the MACC chief commissioner, said they could eventually be shown to the public as a reminder of the scandal, though he left open the possibility that the government or finance ministry could later decide to sell them.
Credit: Art News
