Crucifixion painting mysteriously found

Robert Baily's art turns up at museum after being missing for five weeks

- WCR file photo Robert Baily displays his unfinished crucifixion painting, Forgive Them.

By RAMON GONZALEZ
WCR Staff Writer
Stony Plain

Five weeks after it went missing on its way to New York City, a $20,000 local painting depicting the crucifixion of Jesus has mysteriously reappeared.

It was delivered May 20 to the National Museum of Catholic Art and History in New York - an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institute. "No explanation. It was just gone," said Michelle Bailey, business manager of Bailey Art and Publishing and wife of Robert Bailey, the painter.

"The main thing is it showed up and it is no longer lost. We are very grateful that it has found its way to where it was originally supposed to go. I always said it was hiding but I said Jesus knows where it is."

Michelle received a call from UPS on May 21 saying the painting had been signed as received at the museum at 3 p.m. the previous day.

"We don't know what happened," she said May 21. "What is so confusing about this is UPS never called us, they never told us it was missing."

The National Museum of Catholic Art borrowed Forgive Them, a 54x28-inch oil painting depicting the crucifixion, for Pope Benedict's visit to New York last month. The Baileys packed it in a wooden crate and shipped it via UPS on a three-day delivery schedule.

The couple only learned the painting had not reached its destination when the museum contacted Michelle in early May asking where it was.

She has been trying to trace the painting ever since.

Michelle expects the museum to display the painting for a few weeks.

"After all of this they better darn well hang it on the wall," she laughed.

Forgive Them was Bailey's first religious painting. He has spent most of his career painting scenes from the Second World War and portraits of women, and then selling them as limited edition prints worldwide.

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