A famous Vancouver artist had one of his art pieces stolen from a local theatre and housing complex that caters to low-income artists (primarily seniors).
PAL Vancouver’s facility opened in 2006 and has been supporting local artists since then. PAL is a registered charity.
While the stolen piece was never appraised, PAL believes it is worth several thousand dollars, and they’re hoping the public can help track down the stolen art.
PAL sent Daily Hive an email along with pictures of the alleged thieves caught in the act.
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Joe Average is the name of the artist whose piece was stolen.
PAL Vancouver/Facebook
According to Average’s biography, he was diagnosed with HIV at the age of 27 and made the decision to commit the rest of his life to art. He has even been appointed the Order of British Columbia.
the painting is finished!
Now we just wait for the scaffolding to come down! #vanmuralfestival #JoeAverage #JoeAverageArt #GranvilleStreet #HelmekenStreet #40YearsLater pic.twitter.com/Cs0rpZOFwQ— Joe Average (@JoeAverageArt) August 9, 2021
There’s a chance you’ve seen Average’s work just walking around Vancouver, like this banner in Davie Village:
Wikipedia
The stolen piece was taken from PAL Vancouver on January 12 at around 8:40 pm, and two people are caught in surveillance footage walking the piece out of the facility.
PAL Vancouver
In one of the pictures, the alleged thieves are posing with the stolen piece.
PAL Vancouver
PAL told Daily Hive that this has never happened before.
“Our residents are very upset.”
PAL suggested that VPD did a brief investigation but “it doesn’t look like they’re going to investigate any further.”
PAL Vancouver
We reached out to the VPD, who said it is indeed still investigating.
“We believe a man and a woman stole the artwork, said to be worth $20,000.”
The suspects haven’t been identified.
PAL Vancouver
Anyone with information is being asked to contact PAL via email.
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