The painting of ‘Wally the galah’ by artist, Kelly Batsiokis, which was taken from the Lyell McEwin Hospital in Adelaide only days after Christmas, has been recovered by authorities and returned to its rightful home.
According to Adelaide Now, the cardiology team from The Hospital Research Foundation had purchased the artwork in 2022 for the unit’s waiting area.
Batsiokis asserted that the painting was not cheap, and the purchase was “an incredibly generous gesture for the staff and patients”.
“Thank you to whoever handed him in,” Batsiokis said.
The framed, 1.2m-high painting, which was stolen on December 28 by a man dressed in High Vis, was discovered undamaged and neatly wrapped inside an Elizabeth funeral home.
On January 2, the same 38-year-old Salisbury Heights man was reported for the theft, with the painting finally being returned to the hospital this morning.
The Salisbury Heights man will be arraigned in Elizabeth’s Magistrates Court at a later date.
Source: Adelaide Now
