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SALT LAKE CITY — A heavy steel sculpture has disappeared from downtown Salt Lake City, and the artist said he's not only disappointed, but surprised that someone was able to get away with it.
The sculpture was part of an art walk called Secret Eve. It weighed about 100 pounds and was mounted to a planter in front of the Energy Solutions Arena. A museum staff member noticed it was mysteriously gone on New Year's Eve.
Joe Casalino, who sculpted the steel work of art, spends hours each day in his workshop transforming industrial pieces of metal into art.
"It's more an emotional value that I have on it," Casalino said.
When he had a chance to create the sculpture and have it displayed on the streets of Salt Lake, he thought it was a great idea.
"I think that the more integration of artwork we have to the public eye is a great thing," Casalino said.
Organized through the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art, people were encouraged to take pictures of just over a dozen pieces around town and post them on Instagram with the [ hashtag secret eve ](<https://twitter.com/search?q=%23secreteve&src=hash >).
But Casalino's Piece never made it to New Year's Eve.
Well, I could feel elated in saying that somebody really likes my work a lot, but I more feel like a piece of me has been stolen.
–Joe Casalino, sculptor
"I saw how Joe had connected it to the planter, and didn't think it was actually possible for somebody to remove it," said Jared Steffensen, Curator of Education at the museum.
Steffensen said he noticed the piece was gone Dec. 31.
"Part of the project is to put art out in the public, and have people experience it maybe in a different way than they do in the museum," Steffensen said.
A couple of pictures of Casalino's steel-welded tree turned up on Instagram. He didn't realize it was gone until he showed up to take it home yesterday morning.
"I pulled up in front of the building and looked over there, and there was nothing there," Casalino said. "It's gone."
He said with the hours he put in and the emotional attachment he has to the sculpture, he'd just like to have it back.
"Well, I could feel elated in saying that somebody really likes my work a lot, but I more feel like a piece of me has been stolen," Casalino said.
Casalino is filing a report with Salt Lake Police, but said he won't press charges if he can just get the sculpture back in one piece.
Museum staff members said they may have to consider placing some of the art pieces indoors for next year's Secret Eve.
