Art

The Renoir abandoned during the theft at the Fondazione Magnani Rocca in Parma is 'Paysage de Cagnes'

Three Impressionist and Post-Impressionist masterpieces, including a Cézanne and a Matisse, were stolen by an organised gang from the villa in Traversetolo.

by Rome Editorial Staff

31 March 2026aggiornato il 31 marzo 2026, ore 9:30

L'opera di Paul Cézanne "Natura morta con ciliegie", rubata dalla collezione della Villa dei Capolavori della Fondazione Magnani Rocca di Traversetolo, Parma, 29 marzo 2026, WEB/FONDAZIONE MAGNANI ANSA

3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

Key points

Cezanne, Renoir and Matisse, here are the masterpieces stolen in Parma
The Shot
Secrecy
The works

3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

The painting taken and then abandoned during the escape of the thieves who struck the Magnani Rocca Foundation in Traversetolo (Parma) a week ago is the other Renoir kept in the collection, 'Paysage de Cagnes'.

The theft involved a work by the French Impressionist, 'Les Poissons', a Cézanne and a Matisse. The gang, however, failed to take away the fourth painting, the other Renoir, exhibited in the same room and left, abandoned, inside the villa.

Cezanne, Renoir and Matisse, here are the masterpieces stolen in Parma

A plate of fish that Pierre-Auguste Renoir painted towards the end of his life, one of the rare presences of the Impressionist in a permanent collection in Italia. And then another still life with a cup and plate of cherries painted by Paul Cézanne in 1890.

Finally, one of the odalisques designed by Henri Matisse, lying on a terrace where the charm of the Orient and the colours of the Côte d'Azur combine. These are the three paintings, works worth millions, stolen in the night between 22 and 23 March from theFondazione Magnani Rocca in Mamiano di Traversetolo, in the Parma countryside.

The shot

Exhibited and preserved in the Villa of Luigi Magnani's masterpieces, in the Hall of the French on the first floor, they were stolen by a gang of professional thieves, who broke in through a doorway and allegedly took videos showing them with their faces covered or hooded. The action, the Foundation itself explained, lasted less than three minutes and was anything but extemporaneous, 'but rather within a structured and organised context'.

With 'clearly planned functional subdivision of the serious unlawful conduct, which, however, was not carried out due to the coming into operation of the protection systems and thanks to the very prompt intervention of the internal security, the carabinieri and the security institute, to whom we extend our sincerest thanks for their courage and promptness'.

Reserve

The art theft, one of the most important in Italy in recent years, is being closely investigated by the Parma Carabinieri and the Bologna Cultural Heritage Protection Unit, coordinated by the Public Prosecutor's Office. The news remained confidential for a week and the museum remained regularly open, even today, to the public.

The Works

The paintings, Renoir's 'Les Poissons' - oil on canvas (1917), Cézanne's 'Tasse et plat de cerises' - watercolour (1890) and Matisse's 'Odalisque sur la terrasse' - aquatint on paper (1922) - are part of the rich collection of one of Italy's most important art institutions. Critic, musicologist and writer, Luigi Magnani (1906-1984) put together during his lifetime works by such greats asTitian, Dürer, Rubens, Goya, Canova, Monet, Burri and one of the most significant collections of works by Giorgio Morandi.

Immersed in the Parma countryside, the residence features neoclassical and Empire furnishings and is surrounded by a Romantic Park with exotic plants, monumental trees and the white and coloured peacocks, emblems of the Symbolist movement.

It is precisely to "Symbolism in Italia. Origins and Developments of a New Aesthetic 1883-1915" is dedicated to the exhibition, with more than 140 works, currently running at the Fondazione Magnani-Rocca until 28 June. In recent years there have been many important exhibitions hosted, as well as tried and tested collaborations undertaken over time with other museum institutions in Europe and around the world.

For example, the 50 Morandi was lent for an exhibition in New York, at the David Zwirner Gallery, in early 2025. While for the 150th anniversary of Impressionism, Renoir's 'La Promenade', one of the most fascinating paintings by the French artist and perhaps of his entire artistic movement, was hosted at the end of 2024.

The painting came from the Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles and joined, for a time, the two Renoirs in the permanent collection, witnesses of the painter's most mature season: 'Paysage de Cagnes' and, indeed, 'Les poissons'.