Artist's bronze piece missing from St. Charles park

Patricia Brutchin spent four months, hundreds of dollars and a lot of creative energy crafting a work of art for this year's Sculpture in the Park series in St. Charles.

Now it's gone.

Brutchin made the disappointing discovery herself Friday afternoon when she returned to the exhibit at Mt. St. Mary Park to carve a signature on the base of her 18-inch bronze sculpture, "Winged Crawler."

Approaching its limestone pedestal, the Lake in the Hills artist said she was aghast to see the roughly 75-pound piece had been stolen, apparently by someone with a screwdriver and a saw.

"It was very devastating," Brutchin said. "I have no copy (of the piece). I have nothing. I really, really loved it and now it's gone."

The theft disappointed the local arts community, which is preparing for its 10th Annual St. Charles Fine Art Show this weekend and is celebrating Arts Month in the city.

David Richards, executive director of the Downtown St. Charles Partnership, which sponsors both the art show and the sculpture series, said this is the first time a sculpture has been stolen from the free outdoor exhibit, now in its third year. He called the incident "frustrating."

"It ruins it for the residents, the visitors and the artist," Richards said.

St. Charles police spokesman Paul McCurtain said a reward of an as-yet undetermined amount will be offered for information leading to an arrest in the case.

According to exhibit organizers, the piece likely was taken sometime after May 11, when it was reportedly last seen at the park south of West Main Street along the Fox River.

McCurtain and Brutchin each said it appeared as if the 18-inch sculpture of a figure with wings was pried from its base using a screwdriver or some other flat tool, then sawed away from quarter-inch-thick spikes mounting it into the limestone block.

Brutchin said there is some speculation that perhaps the piece's somewhat gothic nature appealed to someone of a younger age. Richards wondered whether it was stolen for the resale value of the bronze.

Brutchin, who has been a professional artist for 20 years and teaches at the Illinois Institute of Art in Schaumburg, had a $5,000 sale price on the sculpture, her first made of bronze. She said the bronze itself cost about $300, and she spent months transforming the piece from its original wax mold. The sculpture was completed just one day before the 17-piece exhibit's April 23 installation.

Richards said he has asked for extra patrols from park security and police to deter any other art thieves. In the past, he said, a few sculptures received "minor" and repairable damage while on display in the park, but none was flat-out stolen.

"This is the first time this has happened," Richards said. "I'm certainly hoping it will be the last."

Anyone with information on the case is asked to call police at (630) 377-4435 or Brutchin at (224) 623-9957.