A life-sized statue by sculptor Mary Ann Moy was found destroyed and badly damaged in the woods of Sylvester Manor earlier this month. (Source: Charity Robey)
According to Det. Sgt. Jack Thilberg of the Shelter Island Police Department, there are no new reports regarding the sculpture in Sylvester Manor Woods that was vandalized and severely damaged earlier this month.
Police removed the partially destroyed artwork from its location, where it was part of a sculpture and art exhibition, “for forensic examination and to analyze it more closely,” Sergeant Thilberg said. It was then returned as it was found, face down, to its original location in the forest.
The life-size sculpture titled “Sylvanos,” which originally sat on a tree trunk, is described by its creator, Mary Ann Moy, as “a forest satyr… He was first created in clay and then hand-cast in concrete with a bronze patina.”
The sculpture was found face down with its head and back crushed on August 2. It was discovered by Tom Cugliani, the contemporary art exhibition curator at Sylvester Manor, who reported that the life-sized sculpture was badly damaged.
In addition to the vandalism, an audio installation was missing from an outdoor exhibition.
Mr Cugliani discovered the damaged work, which was displayed along with other sculptures along a 2-mile trail through Manor’s woods, during a guided tour.
Jim Pugh recalled seeing the sculpture intact in July while on his way to the Quaker meeting in the Manor woods. Something caught his eye, he said, and startled him. It was the seated figure, seemingly attentive to its natural surroundings.
Recently, after the damaged sculpture was returned by police, Mr Pugh and Jonathan Brush turned it over and leaned it against a tree after asking Ms Moy for permission.
“She said she was OK with it,” Mr Pugh said. “And as Jonathan put it, ‘When you have lemons, you make lemonade.'”
When they returned later, they found that someone had placed a bouquet of artificial flowers on top of the artwork. “A wonderful, participatory gesture,” said Mr Pugh.
There were numerous rumors circulating on the island about the cause of the damage to the sculpture. Among them was that nothing bad had happened, but that it could well have been because someone had sat on the sculpture or because of out-of-control behavior.
Det. Thilberg disputed this interpretation. “We initially had the impression that it was an accident,” the officer said. “But that does not seem to be the case. The sculpture was hit several times.”
The investigation is ongoing.
