[MSN] Canada. Art thieves empty Byward Market gallery

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Art thieves empty Byward Market gallery  
Last updated May 30 2006 03:21 PM EDT 
CBC News
 
Thieves cleaned out the entire collection of an art gallery in Ottawa's
Byward Market, taking more than $20,000 in sculptures, jewelry, paintings -
and even their labels.

Thirty paintings, 10 sculptures and about 30 pieces of jewelry by emerging
and established artists from the area were taken in the heist at the Blink
Gallery on Sunday night or Monday morning.

All that was left was a glass case, which had contained dozens of pieces of
delicate jewelry.

Members of the artists collective that runs the space say they were
devastated by the loss. 

"They took the lot," said Karen Bailey, an artist who lost seven works. 

She said her pieces, worth about $2,000, were not insured.

"I was absolutely devastated," she said. 

"You don't think that collectively they'll go. You think perhaps one piece
might go. I think most people are prepared for some form of theft, but not
on this scale," she added.

The heist was first discovered at lunchtime Monday when an artist dropped by
to pick up a piece of her art, only to discover an empty gallery.

At first, she believed construction crews scheduled to work on the basement
had mistakenly moved everything to another part of the two-storey heritage
building. 

After searching the building, she realized they'd been robbed.

No sign of forced entry

Police are investigating the robbery and have already fingerprinted the sole
remaining object - the jewelry case. They said there was no sign of forced
entry to the building.

The gallery houses works by 13 local artists in a building owned by the
National Capital Commission. Many of the artists have keys for the building
and know the access codes for the security system.

But Bailey discounted any theorizing that it was an inside job, saying none
of the artists would steal from the gallery.

Images of stolen works to be posted online

The entrance to the gallery, which is tucked in the back of Majors Hill Park
across from the National Art Gallery, is not visible from the nearby street.

In hopes of locating the stolen art, many of the artists plan to upload
digital photos of their work to the gallery's website over the next few
days.

The members are scheduled to meet on Thursday to discuss the future of the
gallery. 

http://www.cbc.ca/