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Why do you think he left the painting?

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Good question! I wrote the thing--I don't want to impose an answer on readers' imaginations! What do you think? Would you have left it?

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My impression is that he didn't want to corrupt his precious memory with an act of criminality. Perhaps he yearns for that part of his life when he was happy and didn't have to resort to grand larceny lol.

I probably would have left it too, just for the artistic touch. It's kinda like a banksy stunt.

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I like your answer a lot! This adds a lot to the story!

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1. Favorite is definitely Nighthawks by Hooper. Monet's Magpie is a close second though, and when i read you story, the first "houses" I pictured were the Monet's haystacks (which look a lot like hovels to me).

2. Only clips.

3. I'm either slow to read or oblivious, likely both. I've never seen the un-updated questions.

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Fun fact, the image used for this story is Hooper's "Ryder's House". I saw it in a museum and it stopped me cold in my tracks. I can't explain why.

I scrambled to get this post out this morning and copied a previous story, so it was just that stories questions 😂

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"Oy, boss..." Did you intend to make that guy Jewish?

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It's just generic mafia language!

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1. I don't know if I have one particular favorite painting classic-wise, although I do like Van Gogh's Starry Night.

2. I haven't, unfortunately. I've seen a Columbo episode with an art expert who was like the anti-Bob Ross: he was stuffy and arrogant and made horrible puns, and also murdered his uncle and framed his eccentric aunt so he could get his uncle's art collection.

3. I didn't!

I have this mental image now of an art thief alone in the dark chirping forlornly to himself and its hilarious.

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author

The Chirpin' Crook!

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"I am vengeance! I am the night! I am-"

*chirp*

"What?"

*CHIRP*

*ominous chirping rising*

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What’s your favorite painting?

I struggle to pick one but 'The Last Man' by John Martin is up there - https://images.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/styles/dynamic_medium/public/import-objects/164235_v0_large.jpg - along with JMW Turner's 'Fishermen at Sea' - https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/turner-fishermen-at-sea-t01585 - and William Yeames 'And When Did You Last See Your Father?' - https://images.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/styles/dynamic_medium/public/import-objects/142801_v0_large.jpg

Did you ever watch Bob Ross?

When it was streamed on Twitch but only a couple episodes.

Did you see these questions before I remembered to update them?

I did not.

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I agree with David Smart's comment that the thief left the painting to avoid corrupting a good memory he had of his childhood. I also saw that as the thief trying to retain, as best he could, a piece of his innocence. He's committed this grand theft, but he left one painting--the one that resonates most with him--as an act of childhood grace.

I also wanted to say, the last museum I visited was the Isabel Stewart Gardner museum in Boston...the site of the largest, and still unsolved, art heist in history. It was so fascinating to walk through that historic building and learn all about the art, the pieces preserved there, and the mystery of the crime...

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Bob Ross is a staple in our house. Used to watch each morning to start my day. I enjoy painting so follow several contemporary painters. However my favorite classics are the Impressionists.

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