More than 200 gold statuettes of Austria’s most famous composer disappeared from his hometown of Salzburg, leaving a tribute to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart on his 270th birthday considerably less crowded, reports BritPanorama.
The Mozarteum Foundation on July 15 unveiled 320 statuettes, less than 20 inches high, showing Mozart with his dog. They were designed by German conceptual artist Ottmar Hörl.
Within two weeks, over 80 of the polymer figures had vanished. By Wednesday, a total of 210 were reported missing.
“The worst thing for an artist is when his work dissolves,” Hörl told the German news agency dpa, suggesting the theft was likely organized rather than a result of visitors taking the works.
Hörl had intended to sell the statues for about 100 euros ($114) once the exhibition concluded, indicating that those responsible for the theft would not likely profit significantly from the act.
The mini-Mozarts were displayed not only in the garden of the composer’s former house but also in his living quarters and several pavilions.
While some spare statuettes were set aside for this purpose, there were insufficient numbers to cover the actual losses. Additionally, the manufacturer of the statues was on holiday, complicating any immediate resolution to the theft.
The exhibition, now more widely spaced due to the thefts, is scheduled to remain open until August 30.
Hörl noted that the theft of his artworks is not unprecedented; a previous installation in Bayreuth, Germany, had an entire array of Richard Wagner statues stolen within 10 days.
“That’s just the nature of public space. When you work as an artist in a public space, you mustn’t complain about what is happening there,” Hörl explained. “It ranges from destruction to theft. That’s just how it is.”
Mozart was born on January 27, 1756, in Salzburg, where the Mozarteum Foundation supports concerts and maintains museums dedicated to him.
“I didn’t want to do a monument of Mozart. There are already enough of these. But I wanted to show his human side, that he was a normal human being despite his genius,” Hörl told The Associated Press.
To emphasize this human aspect, Hörl depicted the composer with his favorite dog, Pimperl, reflecting how Mozart and his family were known to enjoy long walks with their dogs in the Mirabell Garden next to their residence.
