Third public art theft in a month: Westmount bronze statue stolen

A bronze statue was recently stolen from Prince Albert Square in Westmount, marking the third public art piece to go missing in just over a month in the Montreal area.

The statue, called "Mother and Child," which vanished on Nov. 27, was designed and crafted by world-renowned sculptor Lea Vivot.

"Of course I was shocked. It's my own personal experience. It's my experiencing being a mother. Having the child, first born and it just hit me very hard," Vivot said in a recent interview.

According to the artist, the statue is worth just under half a million dollars, and she is asking whoever took it to bring it back.

"It's a void. Just like when you lose, you know, it's a drastic comparison. Your own member of a family. And I think it was a landmark for Montreal and people loved it. And I was very proud that it was there, and they appreciated it," she said.

Claudine Levy owns the statue and loaned it to the City of Westmount to put on display. The family said the artwork holds sentimental value beyond its price.

"It was purchased when my mom was pregnant with my sister, her daughter. It isn't really about the value of the piece, for sure it's a big artist, Lea Vivot, but it's also about the connection we have with it. You can't really replace that, you know?" said Levy's son, Samuel El-Kaim.

The mayor of Westmount said the priority was to get the statue back.

"It is an example of a resident who was incredibly generous with the public with this piece of art. They were extremely proud of it. It brought a lot of joy. And, you know, it's an incredible gift to people to have this in our city, in this public square," said Mayor Christina Smith.

This latest theft comes just one month after the statue of Gilles Villeneuve was stolen from outside the museum in his honour. Two weeks later, the arms of a statue of a young boy in Lachine were removed and stolen.

In the case of the "Mother and Child," the family sends this message to the thieves: "You know, bring it back. We're not looking to arrest anybody. Just bring it back there whenever you want. And that's what the family wants."

Police have opened an investigation and are asking anybody with information to call 911.