[MSN] Sculpted Buddha vanishes in the night. Artist spent many hours over period of months to create 200-pound work.

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Sculpted Buddha vanishes in the night 
Artist spent many hours over period of months to create 200-pound work  
  
By JORDAN CARLEO-EVANGELIST, Staff writer 
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First published: Tuesday, April 3, 2007 
 
COLONIE -- For many, the quest for enlightenment begins with a period of
self-reflection. Last week, Glenn Durlacher's search for Buddha started with
a call to Colonie police.
Not just any Buddha, but a 5-foot, roughly 200-pound likeness of the
"enlightened one" that Durlacher, 50, carved from pine and placed for sale
outside the Hewitt's Garden Center on Route 7.

   
The massive mahogany-stained garden ornament, which the artist values at
$3,000, was cut from its quarter-inch metal cable mooring sometime the night
of March 27 and stolen, police and Durlacher say.

"We have no leads or anything on it," said police Lt. John Van Alstyne.

But Durlacher, founder of Glenn Sculptures, suspects the theft was more than
just an impulsive lark. Those responsible had to come equipped with muscular
cable cutters and enough strong backs to heft the statue into some sort of
getaway vehicle.

Once the cable was cut, every one of Durlacher's other creations -- an
assortment of animals and custom planters -- could also have been stolen, he
said. But nothing else was reported taken or vandalized.

The Buddha began as an experiment about two years ago when Durlacher first
made the jump from ice sculpting to chain saw carving in wood. The statue
was inspired by a 6-inch figurine belonging to his mother, he said.
Durlacher traces his artistic family line to his great-grandfather, a
silversmith and top designer for Tiffany & Co.

In a carving market dominated by "bears, bears and more bears, and maybe an
eagle" or "an intertangling of the bears and eagles together," the portly
man-size Buddha -- with its arms thrust upward and beatific smile -- stood
out, Durlacher said.

Durlacher began carving ice more than two decades ago while working as a
banquet chef for Marriott in Fort Lauderdale. He said he doesn't know how
many hours he put into the Buddha work because it took shape little by
little over a series of months.

"A lot of people asked about it," he said. "But for the amount of time I put
into it, I had to ask a good price."

The artist, who used to own several delis bearing his name in Colonie,
Albany and Delmar, hopes someone will spot the distinctive decoration and
report it to police, or simply return it.

Just this weekend, a rare mini-bike belonging Bello Nock, a clown with
Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, was taken in New York City. After
a plaintive news conference, it was returned by a Connecticut man who
received a $1,000 reward.

Durlacher has not yet decided whether to offer a reward.

"That's pretty low to go stealing someone's art," he said.

Jordan Carleo-Evangelist can be reached at 454-5445 or by e-mail at
jcarleo-evangelist@ timesunion.com.

How to help

* Anyone with information about the whereabouts of the Buddha statue should
contact Colonie police at 783-2754. 

http://timesunion.com/