The wood-carved owl that used to guard Lombardy Park in Kelowna, B.C., has taken flight as it appears someone has sawed off the public art piece.
The carving was commissioned in 2023 by the City of Kelowna to bring new life to an old oak stump. Kameron Garbe, an artist based in Armstrong, B.C., completed the carving in one day and says he is shocked to hear that part of it was stolen.
“I was stunned and a little shocked,” Garbe said. “It’s hard to imagine someone proudly displaying a stolen piece of art in their home.”
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What is left of the sculpture is oak leaves and two acorns underneath where the fresh cut was made to the stump.
“It’s disheartening and the whole community really responded so positively to that whole carving and just rejuvenating that tree and giving it a second life. It’s really sad for the community that was enjoying it,” Garbe said.
Since chiselling the owl into the oak tree, Garbey has been tapped to turn bark into feathers on other projects around town, like the heron that now guards Sarsons Beach, which the artist says would be much harder for a thief to make off with.
“It’s much larger and not something that somebody can just walk away with,” Garbe said.
All hope isn’t lost for what’s left of the owl’s stoop. Garbey says he could swoop in and add another owl, with extra security measures, if the City of Kelowna is open to it.
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