Someone has made off with a handcrafted sign donated to the Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) by a Gambier Island artist.
The sign, made of three 30 cm by 30 cm (12 x 12 ft.) ceramic tiles, shows a heron in a moonlit marsh. It was used to mark the entrance to a public trail near the halfway point on the road between New Brighton and West Bay. The trail runs along a linear park owned by the SCRD.
The sign was in place on the afternoon of Sunday, Aug. 28 but gone on Monday morning.
Morgan Campbell said he created the sign about four years ago with tiles that were part of a limited series he’d produced at his studio on the island. Four of the five heron murals went to clients, but Campbell decided to use the last one to make the sign for the previously unmarked trail.
Campbell told Coast Reporter that he’s still feeling quite upset about having a piece of art designed to bring enjoyment to the public stolen. “A lot of people would see it and comment on it, and it became a focal point,” he said. “People always knew where the Heron Trail was because of the sign. It had become quite a feature on the island.”
The sign appears to have been carefully sawed off and carried away. Campbell said he and his friends and neighbours have been keeping an eye out in case it was just dumped somewhere, but so far it hasn’t turned up.
The theft has been reported to Sunshine Coast RCMP, and people are being asked to watch online buy-and-sell sites and elsewhere in case the thief, or thieves, try to sell the sign or the individual tiles.
Campbell said he’s also wondering if the theft may have been an act of political protest. Allowing public trails on Gambier has met with opposition in some quarters, and according to Campbell, other signs have also gone missing in the past few weeks.
If you have information about the theft of the heron sign, contact RCMP at 604-885-2266.
