Vancouver Gallery Lock Broken By Police Responding To Sculpture

(MENAFN- USA Art News) Police officers and firefighters forcibly entered a Vancouver art gallery after a passerby mistook a sculpture for a person in distress. The incident occurred on the night of August 14 at Access Gallery, located on East Georgia Street in the city's downtown eastside.

The work, titled Untitled [The Preparator], was created in 2024 by artist Allysa Pierre. It depicts an art handler kneeling with their upper body seemingly disappearing into a crate, which led a caller to report seeing a person's feet protruding from behind a counter and believing medical assistance was required, according to the Vancouver Police Department. When police could not reach the gallery director, firefighters breached the door to gain entry.

Around 11 PM, Access Gallery director Saghi Ehteshamzadeh received a call from the Vancouver Police Department, informing her of an“emergency situation” at the gallery. The gallery stated in a social media post that first responders broke the lock for a“rescue mission” after someone reported a person in“medical distress.”

Ehteshamzadeh expressed her initial concern to City News.“I was thinking I had locked the door and had the alarm on,” she said.“How could someone get in?” Upon learning that the“person” was actually a sculpture, she asked about reimbursement for the broken lock. The gallery director was advised to submit a claim to the city, but reimbursement is not guaranteed.

The gallery incurred a C$1,000 ($720) bill for a locksmith named Cameo to replace the lock. Ehteshamzadeh suggested to City News that this expense could have been avoided if police had acknowledged a close friend of Pierre's, who lives across the street and informed them it was an artwork prominently featured on the gallery's website.

While awaiting a decision on her reimbursement claim, Access Gallery is fundraising for its 35th anniversary and encouraging visitors to see Pierre's work, which is part of the ongoing group exhibition Pending, on view until October 1. To prevent similar incidents, Untitled [The Preparator] will now be covered up at night.

We previously reported:

Emergency services broke into Access Gallery in Vancouver after a 911 caller confused Allysa Pierre's sculpture with a person needing medical help.

Source: The Art Newspaper

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