Vandalism and theft reported at Blyth Festival Art Gallery 'Anything But Hysterical' show
BY SCOTT STEPHENSON
For almost as long as the Blyth Festival has been putting on shows at Memorial Hall, there’s been a not-for-profit art gallery evolving alongside the unique rural theatrical space. First created at the behest of Festival co-founder James Roy and expanded upon by various artistic directors over the years, the Bainton Gallery is on the verge of celebrating its 50th anniversary year in 2025. But last week, there was an incident involving theft at the beloved local gallery that has both the community and exhibit curator Kelly Stevenson asking questions about why this particular piece of art had been targeted.
Sometime after 1 p.m. on Aug. 27, a currently unknown person or persons entered the gallery, disturbed some of the artwork, and removed several pieces of one of the installations. Just before 10:30 a.m. on Aug. 28, Stevenson arrived at the gallery to prepare for a tour, at which point she became aware that something was amiss. “I walked in, and immediately went ‘something does not look or feel right in here.... It was pretty noticeable that some work had been tampered with in the gallery, and that, upon further investigation, some of it was missing - stolen. I had a group coming in that I was doing a tour with, so it was a quick ‘ok, let’s get things back to where they need to be and looking ok,’ but when I came back down again, later in the afternoon, and took a closer look, there was more missing than I’d first noticed. Which was shocking, because we’ve never had an issue like this before.”
Stevenson has been working in the art space for over 10 years, and this incident is not only a first in her tenure, it’s the first act of theft or vandalism that she’s aware of in the history of the gallery. “The biggest problem that we’ve ever had is the guest book pen walking away occasionally. We've never had any of our art touched, or anything stolen before,” she explained.
She can’t help but wonder if the somewhat controversial content of the gallery's final show of 2024 could have attracted the wrong kind of attention. Currently occupying the Bainton Gallery is a group exhibition of one-of-a-kind works by female-identifying artists interpreting the loose theme of ‘Anything But Hysterical’. It’s been a bit of an envelope-pusher for the small town gallery that’s certainly gotten people talking.
The burgled installation is entitled Greetings from Postpartum Mom - an ever-growing collection of vintage-inspired postcards that juxtaposes images of infallible retro housewives with handwritten notes about the experience of giving birth. After noticing the disturbance at the gallery, Stevenson soon discovered the hanging display of cards was missing some of its most intimate pieces. “These were the ones that people had, collaboratively, worked together to write on, and they were part of the actual art piece. Some of the clothes pegs were still there, so you could see something was gone, and for some, they took the clothes peg too.” Also missing - most of the blank postcards that had been for sale alongside it. The proceeds from those blank cards were intended to go to the Women’s Shelter in Stratford.
Compensating an artist in the event of this kind of theft is a complicated notion. The cost of raw materials in the case of Greetings from Postpartum Mom may be slight, but the work itself carries a huge weight and an ephemeral value that is difficult to calculate. “The gallery’s obviously going to cover the cost of her piece,” Stevenson explained. “But, at the end of the day, it’s not the money that’s the problem - I think the thing that's been so upsetting, especially, is that this has never been an issue, and then you put this show on.”
As the gallery’s manager and the curator of the Anything But Hysterical show, Stevenson feels responsible for the effects caused by this pointless act of vandalism. “Creating any art is personal, but a lot of work in this show is incredibly personal…. In this instance, this is this artist’s first professional show, and I pushed her to do the piece this way. You’re never sure, with an interactive piece like this, how that’s going to work. But so far, before this incident, it was being so well received.” Each handwritten postcard contained a unique, personal story that evoked a real response from both those who have experienced childbirth and those who haven’t.
Some of the everyday details of bearing a child have long gone unspoken in a society that places a high value on the sanctity of motherhood - these cards offer heartfelt, painful, and even occasionally gruesome details of medical maladies, lifelong health problems, and serious mental health issues that can come along with having a baby. Visitors have been encouraged throughout the exhibition to add their own stories to the cards that have already been gathered. “The audience was also participating, and being vulnerable. And somebody has stolen part of that,” lamented Stevenson.