Paparazzi Dog statue stolen from Paddington, artists offering $10,000 worth of art for its return
HAVE you seen this statue?
It is the second “Paparazzi Dog” that has been stolen from the eastern suburbs in the past month.
The latest victim — a bronze statue valued at $25,000, weighing 200kg — was stolen outside the OPUS store on Oxford St, Paddington.
A spokeswoman for the statue’s artists, Gillie and Marc Schattner, said they had returned from holidays to find the statue was gone.
The theft was reported to police who are now investigating and looking through CCTV footage.
“Gillie and Marc suspect that this was a planned and strategised theft,” she said.
“The sculpture needs four to five men to lift it and they would require a large truck to take it away.
“Everyone is devastated.”
The Schattners are offering a reward of $10,000 worth of artworks to anyone who comes forward with the Paparazzi Dog which is about 180cm tall.
The spokeswoman said they would not press charges if the statue was returned before Monday.
“If not they are hiring an investigator, especially considering this is the second large-scale theft of Gillie and Marc’s artwork in just over a month,” she said.
“Gillie and Marc’s Paparazzi Dogs are also on full display in the streets of Shanghai and New York and haven’t been touched.
“It makes us question what’s wrong with Australia. Why can’t people appreciate and respect public art?”
