Latest news with #LlewSummers
Otago Daily Times
07-07-2025
- Otago Daily Times
Stolen sculpture may have been destroyed and turned to scrap
Flight depicts a soaring bird above the sea and was stolen in early June. Photo: File image A $95,000 Llew Summers sculpture stolen from outside the Mt Pleasant Community Centre may have been cut up and sold for scrap. Parts of what is thought could be the 2.2 tonne and 2.2m long bronze sculpture, 'Flight', were sold to a scrap metal yard. After buying the scrap, the yard realised it could be the stolen sculpture and contacted police. Police told The Star they were following 'strong lines of inquiry'. Mt Pleasant Residents' Association chair Derek McCullough has seen the parts sold to the scrap metal yard and assumes they came from the sculpture. But police would not confirm if they had. Llew Summers. Photo: The large sculpture depicts a soaring bird above the sea and was stolen in early June. It was purchased by the centre to honour Summers last year for $95,000 after two years of fundraising by the community. "We were just devastated,' McCullough said of the theft. "Ever since then, I've had nothing but calls of commiseration from the community members. It was very meaningful to the community.' 'Flight' was Summers' final work before he died in 2019. His funeral was held at the community centre. The association committee is now looking into how it can replace the sculpture. One option is to recreate it with a 3D printer. McCullough said the association was in the early stages of deliberation and was unsure about costs and feasibility.
RNZ News
06-06-2025
- General
- RNZ News
Mt Pleasant residents 'devastated' at theft of $95k bronze bird sculpture
The large bronze bird sculpture when it was installed in 2023. Photo: Supplied The theft of a $95,000 bronze sculpture by Llew Summers from a Christchurch community centre has devastated locals who fear the prized artwork will be sold for scrap metal. Mt Pleasant community members raised their own funds to buy the 2.2 metre-long and 2.2 tonne sculpture named Flight, depicting a large bird, in honour of the late artist who lived in the seaside suburb. Sculpted in 2018, the artwork was installed on a plinth outside the centre in 2023 at a cost of around $125,000. On Friday morning the plinth sat empty, surrounded by tyre marks coming from the road and community centre car park. Mt Pleasant Community Centre president Derek McCullough said he first became aware the sculpture was gone after someone noticed it was missing on their way to work. He said the sculpture was inspired by the nearby estuary and the last big bronze work Summers made. "Llew was a local resident who lived here most of his life and had his funeral here, which was an amazing event. 'So it was a tribute to him and on that basis, the locals got together to raise money to buy it," he said. "[Flight] was just a lovely piece that reminded us of his presence around here, and also that we live on the side of an estuary with 30,000 more birds beside the big one he made. "We are just devastated that someone decided to steal it." Mt Pleasant Community Centre president Derek McCullough standing next to the empty plinth where the stolen sculpture once sat. Photo: RNZ / Joe Shaw McCullough said he had not been able to establish when or how the sculpture had been stolen because there was no security camera footage. He hoped a member of the public saw the thieves but was not optimistic the sculpture would be found. "Because of its size and weight, it would have taken quite an exercise to get it. With thousands of cars passing a day, we're hoping one of them might have seen something happening," he said. McCullough said someone likely stole the sculpture because of the scrap value of bronze. "I've contacted the Association of Metal Recyclers and put in a report, hopefully that might stop that particular avenue. "Otherwise, who knows? Maybe it's an unscrupulous art collector who decided they'd like it in their backyard or that they could sell it to someone just as unscrupulous," he said. Police confirmed they received a report on Friday about the stolen sculpture but they were yet to identify any offenders. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
