Artist’s painting stolen from Paso Robles gallery. She called it a ‘back-handed compliment’
A painting was reported stolen from a downtown Paso Robles art studio Saturday afternoon — and the artist who painted it is taking the theft in stride.
The gallery, Studios on the Park, features local artists’ work in six studios and four galleries.
The stolen artwork was an 8-by-16 inch colorful scene of Cambria’s Moonstone Beach by artist and founder of the studio Anne Laddon.
“It’s a darling little study I was using to create a larger piece,” Laddon told The Tribune of the plein air oil painting, which she called “Dawn at Moonstone.”
She painted on location at sunrise a few weekends ago and was modeling a larger rendering off of the piece, she said.
Laddon said the theft took place between 1 and 4 p.m. during the gallery’s open studio hours on Saturday.
The painting was sitting unattended on an easel in the back of the studio while Laddon worked the front desk, she said.
She does not remember the studio being particularly crowded at the time, but said it would have been easy to lift.
“It’s not like it was huge,” she said of the small, unframed painting. “You could’ve walked out with it.”
Laddon said she has a security camera in the studio and plans to check the footage to see if she can identify a suspect.
The painting would’ve sold for $1,000, she said.
Laddon jokingly called the act a “back-handed compliment” for an artist.
“Someone liked it enough to steal it, but not enough to pay for it,” she laughed.
This story was originally published October 21, 2024 at 1:10 PM.
