See all the works by Matisse, Portinari stolen in Brazilian library heist

Brazilian officials in the city of São Paulo have notified Interpol after prints by Henri Matisse and Candido Portinari were stolen from a library exhibition in an armed art heist.

Two armed thieves had entered the Mário de Andrade Library on Sunday while a joint exhibition with the Museum of Modern Art of São Paulo was open during its final day, reportedly subdued guards and visitors, and made off with the artworks.

Authorities have now also released images of the stolen artworks with the hope they can be located before they have the chance to leave Brazil, São Paulo officials said in a news release. No arrests have yet been made.

Cameras from Smart Sampa, a facial recognition surveillance program equipped with artificial intelligence, caught two men on video carrying the paintings to a car parked nearby, city officials said.

"The images from Smart Sampa are assisting in the investigations so that we can reach the criminals as soon as possible and recover the works," Mayor Ricardo Nunes said in a statement.

The Smart Sampa system has previously faced international criticism for privacy concerns and potential overreach.

The Department of Culture and Creative Economy is monitoring and assisting in the investigations, gathering witness statements and images that may help in the capture of the criminals.

“The department is assisting on all fronts,” Culture Secretary Totó Parente said in a statement. “The management of the Mário de Andrade Library has provided all the information, and we continue to monitor the investigations.”

The artworks taken were covered by an insurance policy, São Paulo Secretariat of Culture and Creative Economy said in a statement to Urgent Matter.

The theft comes less than two months after the heist at the Louvre Museum in Paris, which has drawn international attention to the protection of major artworks and artifacts at global museums.