A 78-year-old surrealist artist whose work has recently sold for millions of dollars says he feels "violated" after dozens of his paintings disappeared when he was evicted from his London apartment while recovering from a stroke in the hospital. Henry Orlik, who rose to fame in the 1970s before retreating from the art world for decades, discovered that years of his work had vanished during the 2022 eviction from his social housing flat.
Orlik, who is usually reclusive and has only recently felt well enough to give interviews after his illness, described the devastating impact of losing his artwork. "You feel violated," he said, adding, "I feel physically sick." The artist, who now lives in his late mother's home in Swindon where he grew up, has already offered a $50,000 reward for the return of all the missing paintings, but they have yet to surface.
For decades, Orlik worked in solitude in his London flat, creating an extensive body of work that he stacked and rolled up throughout his small living space. His art has experienced a remarkable renaissance in recent years, with his paintings selling for millions and being featured in private galleries in both London and New York. Over the past 18 months, his work has generated more than $2 million in sales through exhibitions in London, New York, and Marlborough, Wiltshire.
The missing artwork represents an irreplaceable collection of the artist's life work. "The titles aren't important, but I remember them. I worked on them for a long time. They're in me," Orlik explained. "There's meaning behind an image. That's why I painted it, there's a reason." He described the discovery of their disappearance as surreal and unbelievable, saying, "You feel violated. I feel physically sick because it's something unusual, not real." Getting the paintings back, he said, would mean everything to him.
Orlik's surrealist work is known for its unusual style and meticulous attention to detail. Many of his paintings are enormous canvases that would have taken months to complete. The artist employs tiny brush strokes and creates much of his work using small squiggles that he calls "excitations." His technique is extremely precise and accurate, as demonstrated in works like his huge canvases depicting the Battle of L'Aquila, where he adopts various different styles while maintaining his characteristic precision.
Art dealer and expert Grant Ford, who has listed the missing pieces on his website, described some of the lost works as "iconic." Among the missing paintings are depictions of Marilyn Monroe, which Ford called "very beautiful," as well as a painting of a cowboy. "Many of these pictures that have gone missing by Henry are just brilliant. They're icons," Ford said, emphasizing the significance of the lost artwork.
Despite the devastating loss, Orlik's career is experiencing a major revival. He recently had his first solo exhibition in a publicly funded gallery at the Museum and Art Swindon. Some collectors who have purchased his work have generously loaned their pieces to this public exhibition, allowing more people to experience his art. Helen Michael, who owns one of Orlik's pieces and loaned it to the exhibition, described her painting as "very emotional." She said, "The colors, the detail, the imagination, I could look at it for a very long time. You just think, how did he do this?"
While initially estimates suggested that about 78 artworks had gone missing, a recount has revealed that the actual number is likely much higher. Although Orlik is pleased that his work is finally receiving the appreciation it deserves after years of obscurity, finding his missing paintings remains his top priority. The artist continues to hope that his substantial reward offer will lead to the recovery of these irreplaceable works that represent decades of his creative output.
