It’s a sad day when a piece of artwork is stolen. It’s even sadder if the artist is an up-and-coming Detroiter who just sold the work for $600. We’re talking about the segment of a multiple piece by Kamil Antos that was nabbed from detroit contemporary. The Rosa Parks Boulevard gallery was hosting a reggae dance party, and it was crowded with a couple hundred people when the piece was discovered missing, said owner Aaron Timlin. “It’s really discouraging because you start to think that nobody appreciates the value of what we’re doing or the value of the work that’s there,” Timlin said. But as he frisked people leaving his art hub, Timlin says people were sympathetic and “totally upset that it happened.” The missing dark-red colored photograph is one in a 25-piece series of 2-inch-by-4-inch framed pictures called “25 Miles, 25 Minutes.” The series was sold earlier this month. “I don’t feel flattered,” said Antos. “It’s not even mine anymore. Somebody purchased it. … I feel angry and bewildered. Did they like it that much, to take just one section?”
Timlin says detroit contemporary will continue to have music-art events, but may charge a $1 art recovery fee. “Maybe this will help educate people as to how serious this is,” he says.
Lisa M. Collins contributed to News Hits, which is edited by Curt Guyette. He can be reached at 313-202-8004 or [email protected]
