I'm sorry to
report that one of my favourite pieces has been stolen.
It was on
its way back to me; had gotten as far as the shipper's Mississauga, Ontario
plant - a mere 40 minutes from home, where it went *POOF!* The shipper has
essentially said "these things happen" and nothing else, so I now
have to make claim from my insurer.
So, this how
it happened.
I sent it to
the original people in June of 2013, for showing beginning in October. (Note: No, I don’t
know WHY it had to be there so early,
but that was their request.) We were told
that the pieces would be shipped back to us the second week of February, 2014.
When I didn’t
receive it during February, I wasn’t too worried – I know that sometimes it
takes a bit of time for them to get around to it. In the meantime, I got
confirmation that "Silver Eared Mesia" was wanted for another show that was to begin in June, 2014,
and the curator of that show wanted the pieces by May 1st. So when I
hadn’t received it by the first week of March, I wrote to the first party
inquiring about it, and asking whether it could be shipped back to me by no later than April 1st.
Which was when
I was told it was shipped back to me the first week of December!!!
It’s been a
very long, drawn out process to get this sad result, although I pretty much
assumed as soon as I heard that it had been shipped months before (and at
Christmas (!) ) that I was never going to see it again.
So, these
are my learnings.
1. I *always* ship my work by post
marked “Fabric” or “Textile”, never as “art”. In future, I will request that it be return-shipped the same
way. (I have learned that it cannot be shipped by FedEx in this manner, though – it has to be marked “art”. On
the other hand, I feel much safer with
FedEx than I do with the postal service, even before this happened!)
3. If things do go missing, use social media to notify people as soon as possible. I posted about the loss on Facebook when I got the final result of the investigation yesterday, and that post was shared over a 100 times, and has gotten nearly a thousand views! I could certainly have used that kind of exposure when it first went missing!
I’m upset by
this loss as it was one of my favourites in the series. I'm also upset because I have not been able to re-create that branch (so far) and I was looking forward to
getting it back so I could study it.
But mostly, it’s upsetting to me that the person who now possesses the piece is a thief: a person with no sensitivity or fellow feeling with me as an artist.
Someone who
can do this has no connection with me as a maker, nor for what I’m trying to
convey with the work, nor with my overall artistic statement. They simply saw
something they wanted (or perhaps wanted to give as a Christmas gift without
having to bother paying for it), and decided to take it.
It makes me
unutterably sad to know that my little bird is in the possession of such a
person.
I’m sorry to
end this post on such a low note, but unfortunately, that’s all I have to say about this.
Posts
as i said on FB, SUX--i don't understand persons like this--it would have been so much easier to just contact you and offer to buy--and then they'd have the true pleasure of being proud to own it--jerks abound though apparently
ReplyDeleteI am very sorry to hear this -- I'm sure that everyone who creates understands that it is not about the money here. But, the power of social media can be amazing, so it may yet find it's way back to you. Fingers crossed!
ReplyDeleteOh, that makes me sad too. I'll have to be vigilant. It is a lovely piece. no wonder it is one of your favorites!
ReplyDeleteso sorry that there are people out there like that.
Kit - that really is shite! So sorry! H xx
ReplyDeleteKit, this is horrible. I'm so sorry. I'm hoping that the thief has given it as a gift and that someone sees your FB posts and discovers that their gift was in fact stolen. In that way, maybe it will find it's way home to you.
ReplyDeleteThis is very sad indeed. Poor little bird and it is a lovely one.As you know my experience with the Canadian Postal System is bleak as well. I hope the pain of the loss wains as time goes on...
ReplyDeleteGosh, I'm refreshing the FedEx tracking page every 10 minutes today because there's some work to arrive back to me today. Been wondering which god and saints to offer up to to keep the shipping karma clean and shiny---cover all bases, right? Despite hiccups, I am amazed by the efficiency and speed of the services today.
ReplyDeleteI'm so sorry that this happened. Have they declared the package lost? I hope the insurance pays out. But, of course, none of that covers the loss of the work (your blood, sweat, and tears).
xo
I am so sorry to hear about this Kit! It is so sad that people have such little regard for someone else's property!
ReplyDeleteI suppose it is possible that its been genuinely mislaid somehow, but then with so many nasty folks around, my pessimistic self assumes it more likely has been stolen.
ReplyDeleteI hope whoever has it, at least looks after it - and gets very painful piles!
I am so sorry to hear that, Kit.
ReplyDeleteHi, Kit. So sorry to hear of this as that bird is a part of you that has disappeared. Theft is low and evil. I don't trust any of my big pieces to the postal services, but that certainly can complicate life.
ReplyDeleteSo sad that you have been the victim of this theft. What a catalogue of misadventures.
ReplyDeleteOh Kit! That is simply awful!! Whenever I ship a quilt for a show I ONLY use FedEx. Somehow I just always feel safer with them than anyone else. I pray that somehow it will find it's way back to.
ReplyDeleteThanks Marie. Although I try to only use FedEX, unfortunately, I can't control how they send it back to me. :(
DeleteKit, I too am very sorry that you had to experience this loss. Hope one day it finds it way back to you. xo
ReplyDeleteHi Kit ... if it helps at all, a painter once said to me that he felt it was the highest compliment one could get, to have something stolen ... that someone must have loved it so much that they HAD to take it.
ReplyDeleteWhen he reversed the bad feelings, he felt much better. I was dumbstruck when he said that, but it made me realize that, yes, I could do that, too ... and thus not drive myself crazy with negative thoughts.
I bet that your beautiful bird will come back to you ... it's just lost in the system :)