Arts
Somerville police confirmed the stolen artwork had been returned but said the suspect’s identity remains under investigation.
In a puzzling twist, two pieces of art stolen from a Somerville exhibit last month were anonymously returned to a local artist whose painting was swiped in the brazen theft.
In an update posted to Reddit, artist Adam Leveille said he received a strange voicemail Saturday around 8 a.m., shortly after Somerville police released surveillance video of the Jan. 5 theft.
“I can get your paintings returned to you,” the caller told Leveille in the voicemail.
Then, 15 minutes later, the artist said a neighbor knocked on his door and told him a man was in the building’s lobby dropping off artwork for him.
“I ran down in my pajama pants and…lo and behold, both pieces were there!” Leveille recalled.
Leveille’s painting, titled “Nissenbaum, midday,” was one of two pieces stolen from Somerville Open Studios’ “Visions of Somerville” show at the Prospect Union Square building last month. Surveillance footage from Somerville police appears to show an individual dressed in all black cutting down a painting shortly before 3 a.m. Jan. 5. The person then appears to stash the artwork outside before returning more than half an hour later to load the pieces into a car.
Leveille said his painting was returned “relatively unscathed,” and the other artwork, a photograph, was unharmed despite some scratches and scuffs to its frame. A spokesperson for the Somerville Police Department confirmed the stolen artwork had been returned but declined to comment further, “as the identity of the suspect remains under investigation.”
In a subsequent Reddit comment, Leveille said it’s “slightly unsettling” the alleged thief may know where he lives.
“I open my studio space a few times a year so it’s not exactly a secret, but we’re still locking the doors the past few nights,” he said.
Leveille also said the exhibit’s organizers have decided to re-hang the show, but behind glass this time. Somerville Open Studios confirmed curators collaborated with the gallery to re-hang the exhibit Tuesday.
“Visions of Somerville is back,” Somerville Open Studios said in a statement. “The new location is in the storefront at the corner of 50 Prospect Street, directly across from the T and viewable from the street.”
The show will be on display into April, and both of the recovered pieces are included, the organization said.
“Somerville Open Studios extends its gratitude to those who expressed support for the artists as this situation unfolded,” the statement read. “We are deeply appreciative of the safe return of the artwork and are excited to see the show in its new form.”
Leveille likewise expressed gratitude for the return of his painting.
“Thank you so much to everyone who has promoted the story, raised awareness, and offered your support and kindness,” he said. “It was incredibly heartwarming to see the community come together over this.”
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