Volume CXXXIII, Number 4 October 3, 2003 f

Student's artwork stolen from Visual Arts Center
PRIYA SRIDHAR
STAFF WRITER

A note left by Emma Raynes '04 replaced the original poster that was stolen. (Hans Law, Bowdoin Orient)

For the second time in as many years, Bowdoin students' art displays have become crime scenes.

Emma Raynes '04, the most recent artist to have work stolen, discovered that a poster she had worked on was missing when she returned to her display in the Visual Arts Center (VAC) on Monday morning.

Raynes immediately called Security, who is now investigating the case. It is not certain whether the thief is a Bowdoin student or someone from the Brunswick community, however Raynes found a comment in the comment book for her artwork that she believes was written by the thief.

Raynes's artwork was a collection of black and white photographs and posters brought back to the United States from Nepal. Most of the pictures in the collection were of Hindi or Nepali soap opera stars, religious Hindu imagery, and scenery that was brought to Nepal from India. These decorations were not found on traditional Nepali homes but in restaurants, stores, and the inside of buses. The poster stolen was of Sibaba, a Nepali god.

Since the thief has not yet been identified, the motive behind the incident remains unknown. The comment left by the thief was the following: "I am sorry I loved your posters so much I 'borrowed' one…sorry it is how life is. Signed, The One Who Stole."

Many returning members of the Bowdoin community might recall a similar incident from last year when current senior Jason Hafler's ceramics collection was stolen from a display in Moulton Union. Hafler, like Raynes, contacted Bowdoin Security, but the ceramics vases and pots were never found. "I am worried about the potential environment that may be created with the theft of artwork," Hafler said after hearing about the most recent incident.

As far as Raynes's stolen posters, Bowdoin security officer Richard Yanok has been assigned to the case and has interviewed students and faculty members that were in the Visual Arts Center this weekend. He has also interviewed the two Security patrollers that were on duty on campus. None of the interviews have yielded any new leads, however the case has been labeled a larceny.

The poster was most likely taken during the hours the Visual Arts Center is open on the weekend (7:00 a.m. to midnight). According to Security Supervisor Lou Anne Dustin-Hunter, the only way any new information will come up is through students who might have heard something by talking to one another. Although Raynes will probably never get her poster back, she hopes that Bowdoin students and faculty will be more aware of the dangers of unsafe environments for expression.

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