POSTING #116

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Ottawa Art Theft

In March this year, an article appeared in the "Your Ottawa Region" newspaper reporting on the theft of a painting from a Sussex Drive gallery.

" The 23-by-30-centimetre painting, which was selling for $750, was plucked off the wall of Gordon Harrison Gallery on Feb.20 while about 20 people were inside the shop, said Phil Emond, an employee at the gallery.

'We had a busy Sunday afternoon with many clients in gallery and when we were closing when things got little calmer, I looked around and there was a missing spot on the wall,' said Emond."

According to the article, the painting, which was by Bhat Boy, an Ottawa artist,  "...depicts a young couple holding hands at the intersection of Sparks and O’Connor streets with the Parliament Buildings in the background".

Here is an image of the painting, as shown on the www.crimestoppers.ca website.

The article goes on:

 "While the artist said it feels bad to lose your painting, he is also flattered.
 "'I have now joined the club with artists like Leonardo DaVinci, and Edvard Munch now that I have had my art stolen from a gallery,' Bhat Boy said.
"He said he has had his work stolen twice before. In both incidents, the artwork was eventually returned, but one did suffer some damage.
"'My experience is that it is usually because someone covets the work, and not because of any sort of monetary reason.' ”

I liked the article.

The location depicted in the painting is one of my favourites in Ottawa---full of memories of pleasant lunch-time strolls along the Sparks Street Mall. 

I also enjoyed the tongue-in-cheek attitude of the artist that the theft meant he had 'arrived', had joined an exclusive club of artists whose works have been stolen.

And I liked the generous spin that Bhat Boy puts upon the intentions of the thieves. 

It was good to see that he was growing into, not just an accomplished artist, but a well-balanced person with a good sense of fun.

You see, we knew Bhat Boy years ago, when he was just getting started.

"And now", as Paul Harvey, the late  radio columnist with the deep voice, would have said, 'here is the rest of the story".

In the spring of 1997 we lived at 187 Glebe Avenue in Ottawa, in a pleasant Queen Anne revival style house, built around 1911. Once the children started to leave for college Pat opened a very successful bed and breakfast, called Blue Spruces.

Although it was an attractive house, it didn't photograph very well. A large maple tree near the sidewalk blocked much of the view from the front while two enormous blue spruces obstructed the view from the side.

We had been using photos---similar to the one below---of the house on B&B brochures and web sites but never felt that the photos did the house justice.

We decided to try to find someone who could provide a sketch of the house that would de-emphasize the trees and place greater prominence on the house itself.

Our first choice, an artist at a local architect's office, prepared a sketch that while accurate and correct had very little character.

A neighbour said that she had heard of a young artist who was good at capturing the soul of houses and landscapes. She said that although he had a perfectly fine name---Ian Van Lock---he had adopted a new name, Bhat Boy.

I phoned the number she gave me and when a pleasant-voiced woman with a soft British accent answered, I asked if I could speak with Bhat Boy.

The women, whom I took to be his mother, said he was out but she would have 'Ian' call me when he got home. It didn't seem that she had fully bought into the new name.

Bhat Boy (or Ian if you wish) called and we discussed the sketch we were hoping he could do for us.

A few days later, a slim young man showed up at our door with a pen and  sketch pad.

He looked like so many of the young high school students that walked past our house each day on their way to Glebe Collegiate.

Except for a ' court jester' toque!

The toque was made from bright oranges, reds, and blues, with three floppy points. Wikipedia claims that the three points of a jester's hat represent a donkey's ears and tail. In medieval times the points had little bells, but I don't recall that Bhat Boy's toque had bells (I could be wrong).

After saying that he understood what we wanted, he crossed the street, sat on the steps of the house opposite and began to sketch.

Pat and I looked across at him, with his head and toque bent over the pad, and wondered what the sketch would look like.

After several hours of sketching, he told us that he would do some more work on it in his studio. We would have the finished product in a few days.

Shortly after, he came back with the finished product--- see below.

We loved it. The trees now framed the house instead of obscuring it, and we admired the detail that he had lavished on the bricks, shingles, windows and other details of the house.

We felt that his sketch had brought out the personality of the house---a little spooky even (perhaps influenced by this father's occupation---see below).

We used the sketch in our bed and breakfast advertising. Some guests commented that they had been attracted by the interesting image, having passed by the hum-drum photos used by other B&Bs.

The framed sketch is now displayed in our Virgil home, along with the images of some of the other places where we have lived.

In his stunningly attractive website, Bhat Boy gives us a little information about himself, some of it factual, some of it tongue-in-cheek.

"Bhat Boy was born in London, England somewhere in the latter half of the 20th Century. He immigrated to Canada on a steam ship in 1966, and became a naturalized Canadian and grew up in the Nation's Capital with his parents - a cleaning lady and a spy."

"I  have been a self employed painter since 1992. I am represented by Art Fifteen Gallery in Fort Lauderdale Florida, and the Gordon Harrison Gallery in Ottawa and I have been showing with the Art of Imagination Society all over Europe and North America since the 1990's. My unique style is representational but imaginative, often conveying complex ideas and scenarios. I am a Fine Arts graduate of the Ontario College of Art and Design in Toronto, my studies included a year in Florence Italy where I studied traditional renaissance painting. I live in Ottawa, Canada, the city where I grew up. I have developed my own niche in the art market, and to this day most of my livelihood is made from commissioned works for individuals and corporations....

"I am always being asked questions about my paintings. What does it mean? What is the story you are trying to tell? For my part, I enjoy engaging the imagination of spectators. The very fact that my painting inspires questions underscores its value as a work of art. Some of the characters that inhabit my works are deliberately designed to raise questions. I paint Nuns because people have so many preconceived ideas about who they are and what they should be doing, as a result they make an excellent counterpoint in my paintings to contrast with other elements. Dragons usually represent the darker side of the male psyche in my painting, while goldfish represent our relationship to the environment in the scenes that unfold on my canvases."

Here are some images of Bhat Boy's work, which I am including with his kind permission.

This is one of a number of houses built in Ottawa's Glebe area by a contractor, Younghusband, who was noted for his attractive, well-constructed homes

Bhat Boy calls himself an Envisionist and in this painting he imagines the view of Ottawa that Canada Geese would have as they head south in the autumn.

"The cold water of the Ottawa River flows past the National Gallery as the city is blanketed with snow. A crow checks out the enormous spider, wondering if it is too big for lunch. Earns"The cold water of the Ottawa River flows past the National Gallery as the city is blanketed with snow. A crow checks out the enormous spider, wondering if it is too big for lunch. Earnscliffe appears to be on a perch overlooking the Rideau Falls and Green Island with New Edinburgh and the Anglican Church set behind. In the foreground is the Royal Mint and the basilica, with St Bridget’s and the Parliament buildings in the background, all laid out as if Lower Town were a little village of towers."cliffe appears to be on a perch overlooking the Rideau Falls and Green Island with New Edinburgh and the Anglican Church set behind. In the foreground is the Royal Mint and the basilica, with St Bridget’s and the Parliament buildings in the background, all laid out as if Lower Town were a little village of towers."

"Lone Moose looks out over Algonquin park in the last golden days of Autumn."

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Bhat Boy is now taking a sabbatical in London England.

I can't wait to see the fresh interpretation he will bring to iconic images such as Buckingham Palace, the Tower of London, and London Bridge.

I have a feeling that Londoners will love his work.

A side story. Some time after the sketch had been completed, Pat was in a gallery near Almonte, Ontario and saw a Bhat Boy painting. Pat told the owner that Bhat Boy had sketched our house.

Impressed, she shouted, "You have a Bhat Boy!"

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We would like to wish Bhat Boy every success in his burgeoning career.

And finally, if you see the stolen painting, please call Crime Stoppers!

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See you on May 29th for Posting #117 with more stories from our family’s universe! If you have comments or suggestions, please leave a comment at the bottom of this posting,  or email me at johnpathunter@gmail.com.