Robert Wittman, founder of the FBI’s National Art Crime Team and best-selling author, will present Bucknell University’s Samek Distinguished Lecture entitled “Art Crime in the 21st Century” on Wednesday, March 6 at 6 p.m. in the Gallery Forum, second Floor, Elaine Langone Center. A reception in the Samek Art Museum‘s Campus Gallery will follow the free, public talk.
Wittman served for 20 years as the FBI’s investigative expert in the art crime field and is responsible for recovering more than $300 million in stolen art and cultural property around the world. Since retiring from the FBI in 2008, he authored the New York Times Best Seller Priceless-How I Went Undercover to Rescue The World’s Stolen Treasures. Today, Wittman is president of Robert Wittman Incorporated, the international art recovery, protection and security firm. The Wall Street Journal called Wittman “a living legend,” while The Times of London dubbed him “The most famous art detective in the world.”
His talk will discuss his FBI career, taking the audience through notorious art heists and incredibly daring undercover recoveries. They will hear the true stories behind the headlines of the FBI’s real Indiana Jones.
Wittman has presented at more than 100 different venues encompassing everything from large general audiences/museum members to more intimate smaller donor societies. Recently, he spoke at the Naples Museum of Art to a general audience of 600, and at the Smithsonian Institution to a standing room sold out general audience of more than 300.