The Art Thief: A True Story of Love, Crime, and a Dangerous Obsession

Stéphane Breitwieser is the chief subject of Finkel’s book. Thought to be one of the most prolific art robbers in history, the Frenchman stole over 300 works of art between 1995 and 2001. The stolen items had a combined value of almost $2 billion, and many were permanently lost due to his crimes. Although The Art Thief is not a memoir, Breitwieser agreed to be interviewed by Finkel, and much of the book’s content is based on his verbal account of events.

The text presents two perspectives on Breitwieser: the art thief’s perception of himself and Finkler’s analysis of him. The author largely supports Breitwieser’s concept of himself as a gentleman thief who commits elegant, non-violent crimes. His refined aesthetic taste and difference from most other criminals is highlighted as he steals from a love of beautiful objects rather than for profit. However, Finkel challenges Breitwieser’s description of himself as “an art liberator” (16). The author suggests that narcissism leads Breitwieser to believe he is best qualified to own and care for stolen artworks. He also points out The Impact of Art Theft, asserting that his crimes deprive everyone else of access to crucial cultural heritage.

In assessing Breitwieser, the text analyzes the attributes that make him a successful thief. The Frenchman is physically unremarkable, allowing him to blend in with his surroundings. The tools of his trade (a Swiss Army Knife and an oversized designer overcoat) are also unobtrusive. Most importantly, he is quick-thinking and can stay calm under tremendous pressure. Breitwieser’s obsessive passion for beautiful artwork underlines the theme of The Appreciation and Power of Art. In exploring The Psychological Aspects of Criminal Behavior, Finkel pinpoints a complex mix of motivations for Breitwieser’s crimes, from childhood trauma to the desire to retreat from the realities of life.

Breitwieser’s rise and fall shape the trajectory of The Art Thief’s narrative. The fatal flaws that lead to his arrest are arrogance and an inability to accurately assess risk. Consequently, his thefts become increasingly reckless. Breitwieser’s decline involves a gradual corruption of the values distinguishing him from other thieves. He ends up stealing indiscriminately, failing to take care of artwork, and selling items for profit.

Anne-Catherine Kleinklaus is Breitwieser’s girlfriend and accomplice. Dressed in “Chanel and Dior bought in secondhand shops” (3), she acts as a lookout during many crimes and occasionally hides stolen goods in her purse. Anne-Catherine shares Breitwieser’s love of Renaissance and Baroque artwork. Nevertheless, she is the more practical of the couple, holding down a full-time job as a nursing aide. Anne-Catherine’s caution is presented as integral to the success of the art thefts. The rules she sets for the robberies compensate for her boyfriend’s tendency to recklessness. Without her tempering influence, Breitwieser’s crimes become careless and indiscriminate.

As Anne-Catherine refused to be interviewed by Finkel, his portrayal of her is largely formed from Breitwieser’s accounts, home videos of the couple, and her trial testimonies. Consequently, she remains an ambiguous figure in the text. While her participation in many crimes is indisputable, the extent to which she was a willing accomplice is uncertain. The accounts of her friends suggest her relationship with Breitwieser was toxic, and a psychotherapist concluded that she was a victim of coercive control. On the other hand, home videos imply that she approved and even encouraged the thefts. Finkel suggests that Anne-Catherine was initially seduced by the concept of “becoming a little like Bonnie and Clyde” (31). However, as her enthusiasm waned, she extricated herself from involvement, eventually condemning Breitwieser’s behavior and severing all contact with her former lover.

Breitweiser’s mother is central to the text’s exploration of The Psychological Aspects of Criminal Behavior. Finkel traces how far Mireille Stengel shapes her son’s character into the art thief he becomes. Spoiling and indulging him from childhood, Stengel continues this behavior into his adult life. By giving her son money and allowing him to live rent-free in the attic, she infantilizes him, enabling his avoidance of adult responsibilities. Consequently, Breitwieser does not feel the need for a job or to positively contribute to society. Her provision of everything he needs at every stage of his life likely contributes to his sense of entitlement to whatever he desires. Meanwhile, her attempts to buy her son out of trouble with expensive attorneys mean he evades the consequences of his actions.

One of the book’s central questions is whether Stengel is aware of her son’s crimes before he is arrested. While Breitwieser claims his mother never entered the locked attic containing the stolen goods, Finkel points out that she owned a key to all the doors in her house. Although her behavior suggests disapproval of her son’s crimes, the author implies she deliberately “buries her head in the sand” (72). Her failure to challenge him denotes complicity, facilitating his criminal behavior. Finkel interprets Stengel’s decision to destroy irreplaceable masterpieces as an act of misguided maternal love designed to protect Breitwieser.

Breitwieser’s father, Roland, plays a formative role in his son’s life. Exacting and authoritarian, he possesses the opposite traits of his wife, Mireille. When his father leaves the family home, Breitwieser experiences a double loss as he takes his art and antiques with him. The art thief’s robbery of an antique pistol is influenced by his father owning similar guns.

This desire to match his father’s collection continues to be a motivating factor in the art thief’s subsequent heists. One of the consolations of Breitwieser’s imprisonment is his reconciliation with his father after years of estrangement. Roland Breitwieser supports his son during his trial, speaking about his overwhelming passion for art and the trauma caused by his parents’ divorce. However, when Breitwieser resorts to shoplifting after his release, he loses faith in his son.

Alexandre Von der Mühll is a Swiss police inspector specializing in art crime. His perspective in the narrative creates the atmosphere of a crime thriller as he pursues Breitwieser and Anne-Catherine for six years. Determined to catch the art thieves, he views their evident confidence as a challenge.

The Swiss inspector acts as a foil to Breitwieser in the text, underlining the theme of The Appreciation and Power of Art. Von der Mühll and Breitwieser share a similar passion for art, but the police inspector acquires his collection legally. He also devotes his professional life to catching criminals who deprive the public of access to art. Von der Mühll extracts detailed confessions from Breitwieser by appearing non-judgmental and forming a rapport over their shared interest. The approach convinces Breitwieser he is “sympathetic to his plight, and likely the best ally he’ll find in law enforcement” (158).

Bernard Darties is an inspector in the art theft division of the French police force. While Von der Mühll is investigating Breitwieser’s robberies in Switzerland, Darties looks into French art thefts he believes to be linked. The two men’s parallel but separate investigations highlight the need for the international collaboration of law enforcement agencies to recover stolen art. Darties’s attitude to Breitwieser’s crimes is uncompromising, emphasizing The Impact of Art Theft. Having worked in an antiterrorism unit, he believes terrorism and museum robberies are similar offenses: Both “destabilize society” by indiscriminately causing harm to the public.

Christian Meichler is the Frenchman Breitwieser employs to frame his stolen works of art. Meichler is unaware of the paintings’ provenance, and the two men form a friendship over their shared passion for art. The framer’s testimony during Breitwieser’s Swiss trial emphasizes The Appreciation and Power of Art. Meichler expresses his conviction that his friend’s crimes were driven by his aesthetic ideals and overwhelming obsession with art. When Breitwieser is later caught shoplifting from a clothing store, Meichler cuts contact with him, disillusioned by the art thief’s lapse into petty crime.