Top Finds: 1904 Diego Rivera "El Albañil" Oil Painting

A rare Diego Rivera made its way to ANTIQUES ROADSHOW. One of our top clips from 20 seasons on the air, this appraisal left the painting owner stunned!
UPDATE: See the new 2018 value: bit.ly/2pjoRBV.
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[@michaellewis2484]

The fact that Diego Rivera painted this at 18 years old, shows the true mastery he possessed. One of my favorite artists of all time.

[@thomasgrabowski2202]

Absolutely. Look at the detail and the worksmanship of the strokes of his brush. Even the hat is so perfect, the expressions, you can feel it. Like if he's staring right at you. He was a young maestro with attention to detail for sure.......

[@julienporisse9902]

A young painter at 18 wants to show the world how damned good he is. . . Diego Rivera did just that. This is a very important painting for Mexico, Latin America, and for the world. The look in the eyes of this labourer says so much...this is art, history, culture, humanity, this painting is loaded with meaning.

[@nadiad3963]

Antiques Roadshow aired this tonight and revealed that this painting would now be worth 2 million!

[@abegarcia973]

Nadia D 3 million now

[@abegarcia973]

PCS it just went up to 4 million

[@abegarcia973]

PCS I’m joking lol idk how much it’s worth, maybe a bit more then 2 years ago

[@digger5521]

I heard 50 Million !! Including the frame...

[@abegarcia973]

Digger 55 I’m moist

[@jumpingsloth3963]

For some reason I really love this peice of painting. It's old but its relatable to modern day. The painting of the working man. Simple. Clean.

[@charliefunboy5210]

I agree... but I don't get the eyes.

[@aucourant9998]

That is beautifully painted, what a master artist.

[@archaeologyfornon-archaeol1014]

and at such a young age!

[@samabbas2318]

The face of the El Albanil is mesmerizing . Increadouble

[@southcanada6002]

It is a beautiful painting, the defiance in the face of a man who has nothing and yet a portrait of him is worth millions is a brilliant juxtaposition

[@Marcel_Audubon]

You're reading too much into it, sweetie

[@armuk]

@southcanada - trenchent insight. excellent comment.

[@Marcel_Audubon]

@@armuk thank you

[@armuk]

@@Marcel_Audubon i was referring to the original comment by 'southcanada'

[@Marcel_Audubon]

@@armuk that seems very unlikely

[@josepaz9671]

She said, '' behind a door" at the end killed me. HAHAHAHA

[@HellblazersChannel]

So your saying it was exhibited and authenticated in 1995. It was restored professionally and he had no idea of the value of the painting? Of course he knew the value. This was a free plug to increase the potential value before an auction. That's why he was barely surprised at the appraisal.

[@briananderson2452]

I agree. He's lucky to have the painting cuz he would never make it as an actor.

[@MrZachgonz]

Hellblazer the seller donated the piece though not auctioned it off.

[@aaron___6014]

Hellblazer he looked surprised to me.

[@ValleyoftheRogue]

It is on permanent loan at the San Antonio Museum of Art.

[@Black_Jesus3005]

Marketing

[@mariekirchberg1019]

This is such a beautiful painting. I’m going to El Paso just to see it.

[@TheHolyMongolEmpire]

That painting is absolutely beautiful. I had never heard of Diego Rivera before this, will have to research him.

[@seikibrian8641]

He was a famous muralist, and was married to another artist, Frida Kahlo, who was famous for her self portraits.

[@archaeologyteensyoungadult4477]

What? Even if one has never taken any art history classes, he is of world renown...

[@nicolouw8664]

800,000 to a million dollars - Ay caramba!

[@AlexannderrLeon]

Wait let me go look behind all my doors...

[@JackJackKcajify]

lol good one

[@thomasgrabowski2202]

LOL I found dog hair. x'D ! How much is it worth?

[@triplebeamdreaminful]

beautiful painting. In my opinion it should be worth even more. truly a Mexican work of art.

[@tronable]

Hmm yes, much like your comment, truly a Mexican comment.

[@DoggoWillink]

Well, yeah, it’s a Mexican work of art, literally.

[@ellitestar]

@@tronable tronable just wants us to acknowledge, had it'd been a white subject, he would have accepted Blahs comment without any insinuations..

[@jmatt4life]

I would have raised the roof in pure joy at the news! Simply wonderful!!!

[@DarlingNikki2]

Yeah, this guy was just a little too calm, like someone told him a previous amount close to that already and this was a stunt or something. They would have been calling an ambulance for me if I heard an estimation like that lol.

[@WolfeTone66]

I’d say he’d done some research on the Internet beforehand.

[@ChescoYT]

5-10 million dollars easily! An iconic masterpiece! Imagine how gorgeous the colors must have been when first painted, that yellow must have been so vibrant!

[@ivanleon6164]

agree, im mexican, but im not millionaire. The feeling i had when i saw it, i can tell there are lot of Mexican millionaires who would pay the 10 million mark, easily.

[@michaelsorrentino3346]

Very true. $1million is a low estimate. I’d love to see this in a public museum

[@kristinab1078]

This painting looks quite different than other paintings I've seen by Diego Rivera. This one appears to have been done with a very experienced hand so I was surprised it was one of his early works and not one of his later ones.

[@ValleyoftheRogue]

Currently, the painting is on permanent loan at the San Antonio Museum of Art.

[@alvinmc5593]

what does that mean? He loaned it to the Museum for certain time for showing?

[@Lightworkps]

Permanent loan? So he gave it to the museum is what you are saying.

[@ronaldkasteel3459]

@@alvinmc5593 might be untill he dies and the family gets it after that ,if this is 20 years later the price will grow alot.

[@themonkeyhand]

@@alvinmc5593 It means it is on display there but still owned by the family. Very common in art museums. Read any of the labels and it tells you who owns it.

[@haruko1501]

I'm so glad he loaned it to a museum! I'd have made me so sad if he sold it to a private collector

[@louisasmiles]

WOW!. Beautiful painting. just stunning. i get the feeling that valuable pieces are better off "behind doors" or "we used it as a doorstop". because then it becomes invisible yet preserved...until the time for the piece to shine comes knocking.

[@MushroomKingdom722]

..."$800,000 to $1,000,000" It was at that moment I could hear that man say in his head VIVA MEXICO 🇲🇽🇲🇽🇲🇽 🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻🤣

[@rebeccahefner4290]

MushroomKingDom That's when you hear him say SOLD!

[@jross9800]

MushroomKingDom if he ever sells that painting I hope he celebrates with a tequila shot if not he was not worthy of ever having it in his possession.

[@temujinkhan6326]

Sell it ango spend all the money in mexico with all those fine looking senoritas.

[@starbuono3333]

Ha ha ha ha !!that's very funny !

[@ryanjohnson1265]

MushroomKingDom722 Viva La Mexico dumbass

[@phild2254]

He knew exactly how much it was worth. He had it restored, this would have cost 15k-20k alone and the restorer would have fully informed him of the works value

[@therealgrapesoda]

He may have not been the one who had it restored

[@neil2385]

@@TomokoMurakami I hope he sent it back to the Mexicans

[@neil2385]

@@TomokoMurakami lol

[@davecarsley8773]

$20k for a lining restoration?? Are you absolutely stupid??

[@sbrunner69]

agreed

[@AndySaenz]

My grandparents and parents all grew up in Mexico. But I never inherited anything from them as valuable as this! This is an extraordinary work of art!

[@TerriblePerfection]

Your genes!

[@Silver_Owl]

You should go check behind the door.

[@glassarthouse]

I just love when people who are not lifelong art collectors or people who spend time in the industry buying or selling it find that they possess something so important to the history of art. It's great that this man has discovered what his family has owned.

[@MM-Iconoclast]

Love this painting. Brings to mind Goya or Velasquez.

[@rayjonest.v7258]

This is my favorite shows, period

[@jmm2511]

What a beautiful painting!

[@blessOTMA]

I like this much be than his later work! Gorgeous.

[@RollinRocker]

The calmest reaction to a million dollar estimate ever....

[@hd-xc2lz]

Because he already knew. Can't go through process of restoration and not know.

[@MrDeadInMyPocket]

It belongs in a museum.

[@youbidoubidou]

It is on permanent loan to the Museum’s Nelson A. Rockefeller Center for Latin American Art from Pagent and Rugeley Ferguson, Jr.

[@fucker661]

Karpov Liam money

[@AznS0ulja]

you get paid for no reason essentially

[@bearfangmedia]

Thanks Indiana Jones

[@neojng]

YOU belong in a museum.

[@SassyLassy]

I'm still hoping to find such a treasure at a yard sale or flea market.

[@urbanrelichunter]

You may find it... I paid a buck for a porcelain tea pot at a local flea market.... took it to an expert, it was made between 1700 and 1765 and was appraised at between 17 and 20 thousand dollars. That has been probably my third most expensive flea market find. The only reason I mention that one is it happened about 6 months ago

[@urbanrelichunter]

And yes I sold it... I got 18.5k after selling fees and taxes

[@davecarsley8773]

Keep looking!

[@jacobtimothyvlog3628]

SassyLassy me too

[@aralitra]

I've just watched this exact same video but with a different painting very cleverly shopped in the place of this one.

[@j0llyroger889]

What a amazing painting and superb artist.

[@blackandgold676]

It's not a "picture," it's a painting.

[@AndySaenz]

Wow!! I would sell it to a museum!

[@ugsp22]

I don't care whether he knew the value or not. I'm just glad a painting that was lost was found. Why do people have to be so negative about others? I'm glad he showed it on television and so I got to see it. It's his so the value of it doesn't matter to me.

[@AlexXanderMarketing]

$800,000 is an insult to the early period Diego Rivera oil-on-canvas Community.

[@PJownsyoursoul]

Best comment by far. Haha

[@michellariviere4911]

I say it's worth 25$

[@christopherakee2418]

@@michellariviere4911 Your evaluation shows how much of an expert you are or should I say are not.

[@michellariviere4911]

@@christopherakee2418 I'm an expert Oh yeahhhhhhh!

[@68Boca]

Well, the Mexican Trotsky Appreciation Society President, Ms Kahlo is enraged. To the point of using her ice pick furiously, so her Tequila can be chilled. Of course it's blue. ........😑 (I could try to fit in few more random things but if you don't get it, you never will)

[@stellaproductions1493]

SOLD! haha it's amazing!

[@VictorGarcia-zw2js]

hermosa obra del maestro diego rivera

[@AGM-ts5bb]

Beautiful work.

[@charlesv3962]

Simply amazing

[@tomconstance2391]

That laugh at 3:02. Epic...

[@fredsalfa]

Thats a nicely composed painting

[@priscidr]

Putting lost paintings behind doors that are hard to see after door is opened = I Don’t want anyone to really pay attention to this mysterious lost masterpiece I have in my house.

[@axiomist1076]

I dont know if I could sell it. I love Diego and the fact it was done when he was just a boy ! The insurance might be too much for me though.

[@sushicourier]

OMG I didn't expect that price!

[@stijnroosenboom3771]

3:01 That is the laugh of a man who's sold the painting right after leaving the building😅

[@MrZachgonz]

It’s donated. I believe in New Mexico now on display. You can look it up.

[@MackofejFTW]

It's just a painting of a bricklayer. Yet, I'm crying. Absolutely fascinating.

[@basba_qal]

That is why I Iike watching Antiques Roadshows. A million dollars hanging on your door.

[@rjr1227]

Wow....80yrs or not in the family....I really think I'd sell it to a museum

[@archaeologyteensyoungadult4477]

now on loan permanently to the San antonio Museum.

[@kevinwillis6707]

wonderful expression in the face of the subject, i can see why rivera is important.

[@TheRealBizWiz]

The irony that the painting of a laborer was just hanging behind a door. Only now that he finds out the value will it be cherished. 😓

[@garysmith5268]

BizWiz - if by cherished you mean sold, then yes.

[@paulm5871]

Is the model for this painting Tuco from the Good, Bad and the Ugly??

[@amadeomodigliani9732]

Hanging a painting as valuable as this one behind any door but specially the front door is actually not a bad idea. If someone breaks into that house with the intention of taking everything and keeps the door open to make his escape easy and faster, even if everything else is gone, he would still have a painting worth a million dollars.

[@austfox2170]

amadeo modigliani Wild imagination, especially if they come in through a back door or side window.

[@amadeomodigliani9732]

@@austfox2170 here I was thinking about how smart my comment was haha And you didn't let me enjoy it. But you're right and I didn't think of that.

[@alred6568]

"El Albañil" Mason. Very important of all construction workers in Mexico. Carpintero/carpinter and El Albañil are the staples in Mexican's work force.

[@danseabreeze1404]

El Albañil does not mean "the laborer" it means bricklayer/cement worker.

[@Flowergurl2000]

Yeah. I thought it was stone mason but more than a laborer. Considered skilled labor!

[@morten1975dk]

But if you would look up the artist online you would know quite quickly it is expensive and rare wouldn't you??? And get it looked at by an expert ASAP... Esspeassely when you know it is restored too... He knew exactly what it was worth.. And the reaction proved it..

[@archaeologyteensyoungadult4477]

I think there is more to the story...for sometime apparently it was not thought to be real and had damage? Forgot where I saw that...

[@ymac7245]

So this was hanging behind a door. Makes me wonder what was above the mantelpiece

[@Withcare111]

Yea you expected that valuation . Your reaction says it all

[@josephmeetstravel9762]

I wish I found this painting

[@maxJnrPille]

his laugh made it for me

[@redwoods7370]

El Albanil means "bricklayer." He's a skilled laborer.

[@withastone]

Or stonemason.

[@basehead617]

Colleene Fesko is the absolute best - knows everything!

[@doh1959]

its fantastic

[@pauljefferies2091]

Sold!

[@wodenoftheangles3339]

Wow.

[@chazshier]

he must be a wealthy guy even before this. If It were me I would be on the ceiling after hearing that valuation

[@LimitedWard]

He probably didn't know how to parse it at the time. It's hard to say how anyone would react in the moment given the circumstances.

[@arbitrage2141]

LimitedWard Id be in tears on live tv

[@fewerbeansplease]

He looked like he was acting...

[@AbuOmar]

I'd be doing a hat dance

[@katehobbs2008]

He knew it’s value roughly the restorer would have said,

[@allisonle8596]

It must be worth more than 10 million now.

[@michaelsorrentino3346]

Yes- I agree

[@mylesgarcia4625]

What city was this episode in?

[@OverandOutChief1]

Corpus Christi

[@jacquelineramphal1911]

Show up at the ARS with a painting that was missing ...mmmmh?!

[@fanorama1]

How did it disappear after 1995?

[@HunterBidenCocaineBag]

The story about it missing confused me. Anyway, my mouth dropped open and I peed in my pants a little. WOW!

[@steveoh9285]

Remarkable…

[@Chad121130]

Point me to the closest auction

[@roosterinboro]

I'm with you. Soon as the camera shut off, I'm asking her for a private chat about this thing.

[@WolfeTone66]

OMG...After the appraiser said $800,000 to a million, I ran out & checked behind every door in my house...& guess what..I found a Caravaggio just sitting there..😀😀

[@richardcorsillo9819]

Rick: Let me call a buddy of mine. He owns a taco stand in the mafia museum.

[@Aohco8a]

Who puts such a gorgeous painting behind a door. Some people i swear.....

[@numbereightyseven]

johny a Some people are different to you. Get over your arrogance.

[@peacefulsocialjustice9270]

I believe most people don’t know or care about what their artwork is worth. My husband’s mother gave him all these paintings by members of her family. They were not signed, but they are part of “folk” art depicting Laguna Beach (where they had land) in the 20s, 30s, and of their farms in Indiana and New York in the 1800s. Oil on boards with original frames. Also, we have jewelry from 1900s-1920s. Because of Antiques Roadshow I had them appraised!

[@lin2thez341]

Reminds me of the couple that stole a de Kooning (cut it right out of the frame) and hung it behind a door. Seems odd that your grandparents go on vacation and come home with a Rivera and hang it behind a door for no one to see......

[@Gr8Layks]

@Christopher Davis No, *smart* white people ... who do not blow their hard-earned money on crap.

[@JohnnyAngel8]

My jaw just dropped.

[@yotagang3705]

When he says its in his family for over 80 years does that mean they bought it from Diego in person?

[@king-re6sx]

HOLY COW!!!!!😰😰😰😰😰

[@mykestrada]

Indiana Jones - "It belongs in a museum!"

[@seikibrian8641]

And now it is. www.samuseum.org/press/press-release/early-diego-rivera-paintingonce-considered-lostnow-on-view-at-the-san-antonio-museum-of-art/

[@70806allstars]

Million dollar snicker LMAO

[@AngeloBerardi-em3js]

Sold!!

[@TerriblePerfection]

Beautiful! I would never sell it.

[@tomitstube]

i knew this one would be up there, diego rivera, 1904? oh yeah.

[@thomasgrabowski2202]

the rich laugh came out hahaha post evaluation haha

[@taylorhawley616]

For that amount I'd faint!

[@cesart513]

No way, it has to be worth more!

[@michaelsorrentino3346]

Such a low estimate. I agree

[@austinmaruna1760]

Most lightweight reaction to being handed $1,000,000.

[@camman6912]

WOW

[@grahamallen934]

Nice

[@686bim]

only thing i found behind a door,was myx missus!!!

[@traditionalgirl5585]

Gorgeous painting... amazing it was behind a door.. It's only a Diego Rivera... doh!

[@ls-kk4pq]

And I have trinkets from the 1964 World's Fair! lol!

[@ryanfindlay599]

I'd be like " wtf........yyyyeeeeeeeeeessssss!!!"

[@js0988]

How many Diego Rivera's does this guy have behind his doors???

[@neil2385]

El Albenil means "the Mason" not "the laborer "

[@unamor]

"Albañil", but you are correct.

[@EGC316]

“Oh but I’d never sell it, I means so much to me”

[@WolfeTone66]

It made a wonderful door stop for years.

[@archaeologyteensyoungadult4477]

It is on permanent loan to the San Antonio Museum. He did not sell it.

[@hmax1591]

A better translation of "Albañil" is Bricklayer not laborer.

[@kerryobrien6110]

And she didn't even pronounce it correctly.

[@skeezix8156]

I’m always suspect of the acquisition stories when an item this valuable shows up.

[@archaeologyteensyoungadult4477]

There is documentation as to how long it was in the family...

[@WoodlandDance]

@@archaeologyteensyoungadult4477 How do you know this?

[@archaeologyfornon-archaeol1014]

@@WoodlandDance Research elsewhere.... no longer remember it has been a while. Why do you ask?

[@archaeologyfornon-archaeol1014]

@@WoodlandDance I am curious. This is a famous painting that no one has known the whereabouts of. Do you think he just waltzed in with a famous lost painting, and lied in front of the cameras? Where do you think the painting has been all this time?

[@WoodlandDance]

@@archaeologyfornon-archaeol1014 just curious.. :)

[@sgt6711]

If me that have the painting and hear that number... i will pass out!!

[@MsPinkwolf]

*checks behind door*