a plan to fail spencer reinhard painting
part of a series on Honesty When summer break began, the three returned home to the subdivisions of South Lexington. As they scooted down the stairs their arms gave out and they stopped to catch their breath. In his talk, Spencer speaks to how he found a unique, unexpected sense of freedom and honesty in his art, not constrained by societal influences or monetary pressures. Honored to share the PRHBTN fest with you - your mural being the main attraction of course. Then, everything becomes meta. They take you in the Special Collections and show you these books, Spencer remembers, including Transy's prized Birds of America, by John James Audubon, a four-volume set of life-size engravings the pioneer wildlife artist completed in London in 1838. It was hard for us. Shift + Tab to replay. Two months later, amid a local media frenzy, the four formally pleaded guilty to all six federal charges, including theft of cultural artifacts from a public museum and interstate transportation of stolen property. notified all the airports in the area, dispatched officers to surrounding neighborhoods, and called the F.B.I. 's all-time most significant art-theft cases. Warren, under an alias, would make an appointment with Gooch for that afternoon to view the books they wanted to steal. Once Warren had pulled the cap over Goochs eyes, the two laid a bedsheet on the ground and began piling on the seven Audubon folios they intended to steal (the four-volume Birds of America plus three volumes from another Audubon series). Darren Matthews. The severity of the requested sentences was predicated on the dual propositions that, although the Audubon volumes had never been physically removed from the library, according to the letter of the law they were nonetheless stolenincreasing the monetary value of the crimeand that the Black Cobra Stun Pen used to subdue B. J. Gooch not only inflicted physical harm but was in actuality a dangerous weapon. Worse still for the defendants, B. J. Gooch's ordeal had become a cause clbre among librarians, many of whom wrote letters to the judge arguing against leniency. We live in 10 months of the year in Colombia and spend two in the States. as we left we were going to make an anonymous phone call so they knew she was up here, Eric continues. Theyre one of Hollywoods brightest starsand most troubled actors. More important, the basement was secluded. So we go back to the guy in Lexington and we say, Listen, we want to go somewhere, we want to go out of the country, and we need documentation, Warren explains. Eric Borsuk, Spencer Reinhard, Charles 'Chas' Allen IIand Warren Lipka hatched a grand plan to steal rare books from their uni library Credit: KKYT. He scored a joint before checking into a hole-in-the-wall and falling asleep. Cops entered the basement, a dank pit reeking of marijuana, and found Warren sprawled out on a mattress. They said that this set, Birds of America, sold for $12 million. I said, Twelve million dollars, just sitting there? I'm expecting when I get up there it's going to be taken care of and I'm just going to start lifting books. That was the point all along. Spencer would communicate with Warren from a cell phone, which Warren would steal from a student in the morning. Warren was like, I've talked to these guys. Wedged in among the other houses on Beaumont Avenue, a quiet residential street near the U.K. campus, is a beaten-down yellow cinder-block bungalow, with two bedrooms on the second floor and two on the first. Spencer, feeling increasingly disaffected with school life himself, readily accepted the offer. The plan is to continue using birds as my subjects but bringing back some of my earlier prison styles to take my work to the next level. for a second vehicle at a secret location, which, according to Warren's plan, is used to transport team and loot to temporary resting place. After the heist, since it is certain that the stolen books will be entered into art-theft databases within a week, they have to get the books appraised at Christie's in New York immediately. What becomes apparent, as first faintly and then irreversibly, is the painting as a negative apotheosis of color and form, which Reinhardt defended himself against. The two boys sought cover from the cops in the sprawling grounds of the housing projects. A few minutes later, a short, dark-haired young man, also dressed in a winter coat, cap, and gloves, entered the library. But before long they were put to chase once again, this time by two local thugs. Copyright 2023 The Gleaner Company (Media) Limited. Phase 1 begins at the bungalow when all four get into what Warren designated the G.T.A.V., or the Go-to-and-Away-Vehicle, all disguised as old men. They went back up in the elevator, accidentally stopping on the main floor, where they were spotted by another librarian. It'll show up on your profile and if approved, on this page. They climbed onto dorm roofs, where they'd stake out the library for hours at a time, marking down the comings and goings of teachers, students, and security personnel. Eric rented a proper bedroom upstairs, while Spencer moved back into the dorms at Transylvania. Reinhards works will be exhibited at his residencys final exhibition on May 8, culminating in May 16s big reveal. For footwear he went with clean white sneakers. I'd heard about them before, but I didn't know anything about them. 2021 Spencer Reinhard all rights reserved. Spencer was arrested in a simultaneous raid on his dorm room at Transy. Several weeks before Spencer was approached by Warren about the fake-ID business, he had been on a freshman-orientation tour of Transy, including the library and its exceptional collection of rare books and manuscripts. agents were sitting behind them the whole time, listening to their every word. In fact, they all tell me that as the planning picked up in the months before the heist, the three of them came to believe that it was their best and perhaps last chance to create a viable life for themselves after college. The next day, they worked off their hangovers by checking out Ground Zero before strolling into the bustle of Chinatown for lunch. As they ran, they stumbled again into Chas, who had returned in another car as promised, just in time to save them and drive Eric to U.K. for his tennis-class exam. We figured the more obvious [we were], the less likely [we would be suspected]., As it was already nearing the end of the school year, and there was a lot of planning yet to be done, they agreed to postpone the theft until at least the fall. If you were referring only to my paintings featuring birds, I would say its my ability to render the birds accurately, but in a way that gives them personality.. So we would see parts like that and we would be Oh, this is just like us. Little did the three know that F.B.I. I get the call on the cell phone. [This librarian] doesn't know what we're carrying, but she's like, Where did these kids come from? Eric says. onto nearby Fourth Street and careened through traffic before stopping a mile farther on, in front of a predominantly black housing project. The day of the heist was to be Thursday, December 16, one of the last days of final examsthe library would be nearly empty. The others spent time in the library, too, taking notes on staff routines and viable escape routes. [Warrens] like, Come on up, Eric remembers. That night they had dinner at a Japanese restaurant, followed by drinks at the hotel bar, where Warren chummed up to an Iraq veteran, Spencer almost started a brawl after knocking a table full of drinks over, and Eric picked up a middle-aged Brazilian tourist. Barry described himself as an older man with a long ponytail and said hed be wearing a green scarf. The first call went out to the National Crime Information Center, alerting law enforcement to be on the lookout for a gray minivan with temporary plates, the description of a vehicle seen screeching away from the library. He loved that it had been made the screen saver on the F.B.I.s computers. In early 2006, they began serving their sentences in federal prison, with no possibility for parole. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement and Your California Privacy Rights. By one o'clock that afternoon, the 227-year-old liberal-arts college was swarming with campus police, uniformed Lexington Police, plainclothes detectives, and forensic teams, as well as local news. You know, most people look at that painting as if it was a plan destined to fail, but at the same time, we were planning to fail., In a few years well be released. He was visibly unnerved, Warren remembers. In fact, they all tell me that as the planning picked up in the months before the heist, the three of them came to believe that it was their best and perhaps last chance to create a viable life for themselves after college. They got security around that? Nonchalantly, very nonchalantly, I mean, just kind of shooting it between us. All four were brought to Lexington police headquarters and individually interrogated by F.B.I. . Spencer's life story and his practice are indelibly linked, thus the works he has created are a highly personal meditation on the journey Spencer Reinhard experienced. With a long, thin face and bleached-blond hair and sideburns, he appeared younger than Gooch had expected. And so I see Warren go back. They jump in the van and peel out around the loop.. Starting with a 1970s Pierre Cardin canary-yellow blazer that had belonged to his grandfather, he wore a dress shirt with an ostentatiously large collar and a gold silk scarf. and Lexington police put the pair under surveillance. Realizing that the only way out was through the main floor, they took the elevator up once again and carried the books into a back stairwell that led to another exit. Now we cant ever go back there. She agreed. Sign up for The Gleaners morning and evening newsletters. He focused above all on painting, gaining admission into a prestigious Lexington arts program. Spencer Reinhard and Warren Lipka had grown up together in adjacent subdivisions on Lexingtons south sidefully planned residential tracts wedged in between the city and the gradually receding horse country that rings it. Warren also ordered four stun guns over the Internet. Twelve million dollars, just sitting there? Again, Warren thought otherwise. He looked like he was dressed from a thrift store, Halloran told the agents. It was the sense of redemption that I hadn't anticipated. So I kind of go, That would be pretty crazy, wouldnt it? He said, Yeah, that would be kind of crazy. I then said, You know, why dont you look into it more and well go from there? Just like . Undeterred, Warren introduced himself as Terry, firmly shaking hands before sitting down. Before, in college, growing up, we were being funneled into this mundane, nickel-and-dime existence. I guess when we did that she went upstairs to check on B.J.. Oh, yeah, he almost got shot, says Eric, laughing. Chas backs up [the van] and almost hits the woman as Eric comes around to the door. My world view actually expanded. The next morning, all nerves, he left for the meeting site, a caf within walking distance. They stuffed some of the smaller books Gooch had pulled out for them into their backpacks. For example, if you want to go on a vacation, you should first decide where you are going and how much money you have . Wedged in among the other houses on Beaumont Avenue, a quiet residential street near the U.K. campus, is a beaten-down yellow cinder-block bungalow, with two bedrooms on the second floor and two on the first. The truth is, but for one obvious, big mistakethe trip to Christiesthey probably would have gotten away with it, a Lexington police detective told me. Even if we wanted to, they wont let us. American Animals is a 2018 heist film written and directed by Bart Layton.Starring Evan Peters, Barry Keoghan, Blake Jenner, Jared Abrahamson, and Ann Dowd, it follows four college friends who plan a heist of their library.It tells the story of an actual heist which took place at Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky in 2004.. American Animals premiered at the 2018 Sundance Film . Only by committing a felony could they ensure that they would never end up living back in the sterile, suburban world of the subdivisions. Like if we ever get caught, we're talking about international issues, way past interstate commerce or whatever the hell it is.. (Through his attorney, Allen declined to be interviewed.) In seeking to find a voice of ones own the obstacles are myriad, and often many succumb to the inevitable pressures of life and abandon their practice. I was kind of skeptical, continues Spencer, but the way I rationalized it was: its the biggest auction house. The meeting ended after 30 minutes, and Ms. Halloran escorted the two out, assuring them that shed be in touch after conferring with her superiors on the best way forward. In early February 2005, the F.B.I. See also Late one Thursday afternoon in mid-February, the two friends bought a bag of weed and drove the 700 miles to Manhattan in Spencer's Acura Legend. Waiting for the law to snatch them was nerve-racking, but they went on with their lives as if nothing had been amiss. I developed techniques that no one that I know of has done. When I get up there, B.J. . A female detective went undercover as a Transy student, tailing Spencer while a team staked out the yellow bungalow. Opposite him there is another young man, fully fleshed and with a neat haircut, resting in a chair, staring into space. We werent, like, hardened criminals, so we kind of had to really put up a front. Warren deepens his voice: How ya doing? That kind of stuff. After an awkward back-and-forth, Warren finally handed the man the $500. What they would tell me, then, is their version of eventsand the only complete account of the planning, execution, and aftermath of the heist. [Warren's] like, Come on up, Eric remembers. for a second vehicle at a secret location, which, according to Warrens plan, is used to transport team and loot to temporary resting place. After the heist, since it is certain that the stolen books will be entered into art-theft databases within a week, they have to get the books appraised at Christies in New York immediately. When not at practice, Warren spent his time smoking pot, watching Comedy Central, and reading German philosophy. Near the boiler he also jerry-rigged a greenhouse for growing marijuana. Returning five minutes later with a rolling red suitcase in tow, Spencer opened it on the conference table. By far the most common theory around town was that the heist had been just a frat prank that spun way out of control. Behind the main building and through three blastproof security doors is the prison visitors room, where I meet separately with Likpa, Reinhard, and Borsuk for a series of interviews almost a year into their sentence. We weren't, like, hardened criminals, so we kind of had to really put up a front. Warren deepens his voice: How ya doing? That kind of stuff. After an awkward back-and-forth, Warren finally handed the man the $500. Warren was already busily working out the problem, returning for advice to his underworld contact: What if we had some artwork that we wanted to sell? Warren remembers asking him. When the four boys were arrested the news was met with disbelief, as none of them had been in any serious trouble before. Warren and Spencer readied themselves early without waking the others, silently showering, shaving, and putting the finishing touches on their outfits. So I walk off happy, come back to the States, and blow Spencers mind.. It immediately had kind of sparked my imagination, like a fantasy., O.K., so we're sitting in the car, smoking weed, Warren recalls, and then Spencer said, I just took a tour in that library, and there's shit sitting there you wouldn't believe. Warren called me one night and he's like, We need to get together. Spencer was arrested in a simultaneous raid on his dorm room at Transy. Because no one would go to Christie's with stolen books to get them appraisedthat's how we did a lot of stuff, like, we would smoke weed directly under the [security] camera on the Transy campus, park a car right underneath it and then smoke for like an hour. As reported by People, poor planning and a fumbling execution including one member, Reinhard, leaving his home phone number at an action house eventually led to their capture. Afterward, they returned to the Hilton for an early night. We need to just get over this stuff, Eric tells me, explaining how Warren re-entered his life after their falling-out the previous semester. The plan for the actual robbery sets out three distinct phases. Along the way a stoned Spencer read aloud from the purloined first edition of On the Origin of Species, particularly fascinated by the section on how the ears of domesticated animals have drooped over generations due to the disuse of the muscles of the ear from the animals not being much alarmed by danger.. Warren and Eric got out of the G.T.A.V. I guess when we did that she went upstairs to check on B.J.. The thieves left no fingerprints behind, and there were almost no witnesses. Among them was the 2002 photo from the Lexington Herald-Leader of Spencer and Warren playing soccer. Seeing something in the wayward Warren, the preppy grifter pitched him the idea of selling fake Kentucky driver's licenses in the U.K. dorms. They also noticed a group of people lingering in the Rare Book Room. . Spencer, meanwhile, was accepted to Transylvania on an arts scholarship, his sights firmly set on a career in graphic design. Though they attended different high schools, both were varsity captains, and both made all-state. Far from being social outcasts, they had been popular athletes, and two were on some form of college scholarship. . Afterward, he was to call Eric up to haul the books in two trips to the G.T.A.V., which was to be driven by Chas. The two men followed the librarian into the Rare Book Room, and John closed the door behind them. She offered to take his place. Warren and Chas go up to the Rare Book Room, on the third floor, and Warren brings Gooch down hard and fast with a stun gun, making her a non-factor throughout the operation. Warren and Chas then let Eric in and they begin wrapping the Audubons in bedsheets and put any smaller books in backpacks. She described one of the young men as about six feet tall, with bleached-blond hair, well dressed in a nice suit, and very talkative. 214 E Main StLexington, KY United States 40507, (Shift + Enter to play/pause. Improvising on the plan, he kicked Eric and Warren out on the street, believing three men in a gray minivan would draw too much attention. Chas cursed Warren as an incompetent, and condemned the other two as burnouts, demanding that the three figure out a way to get the books appraised so they could move on to the next phase of the plan. We're going to need more people, Warren remembers thinking. Warren had run up the side of the hill and frantically ran off. In early 2006, they began serving their sentences in federal prison, with no possibility for parole. Because their campuses were only a mile apart, they assumed they would stay close, but as with most freshmen, their assured identities and easy expectations muddied once they hit campus. Phase 1 ends when the G.T.A.V. They had reserved a room in the same Midtown Hilton that Spencer and Warren had stayed in nearly a year earlier. A uniformed doorman cheerily welcomed both boys into the lobby, where they informed reception that they were there for Mr. Walter Beckman's appointment with Thomas Leckey, Christie's rare-book specialist. It immediately had kind of sparked my imagination, like a fantasy., O.K., so were sitting in the car, smoking weed, Warren recalls, and then Spencer said, I just took a tour in that library, and theres shit sitting there you wouldnt believe. and having to sign a fucking book. By hitting the ball back into Warrens court, Spencer thought he would keep that thrilling flicker of criminality burning for a bit longer, while fully expecting there to be an insurmountable obstacle somewhere down the road. Spencer gives me 500 bucks, in my pocket. I'm not sure, but it was a lot. They had reserved a room in the same Midtown Hilton that Spencer and Warren had stayed in nearly a year earlier. The other was short and quiet, wearing a yellow jacket two sizes too large and a matching scarf. I get the call on the cell phone. If we got away with it, wed be in Europe living this crazy life thinking we were Oceans 11 types. During a meeting in the basement, Warren convinced the other two that they were going to need a fourth, principally to help haul the nearly 250 pounds in Audubon folios out of the library. Captains, and John closed the door behind them the whole time, listening to their every.... 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