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Two oil paintings were stolen last week from a North Street gallery.

$1K Reward Offered for Stolen Pittsfield Paintings

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — A $1,000 reward is being offered for information leading to the safe return of two paintings that were stolen from a gallery within Methuselah Bar and Lounge earlier this month. 

The oil paintings by Pittsfield-based artist Edward Pelkey were taken from the Tartell Gallery in the rear of the restaurant on Jan. 8 around 4:30 p.m., according to video surveillance. 
 
The footage shows a man entering through an abutting, vacant storefront that shares a bathroom with the bar and gallery, turning on the lights, taking the artwork, and turning off the lights before exiting. 
 
Due to the image quality, details of the man's features cannot be made out but the video has been shared on Facebook in hopes of someone recognizing him.
 
"We're just eager to get the artwork back if possible," owner Yuki Cohen said. 
 
The Pittsfield Police Department has turned the investigation over to its detective unit for a more in-depth analysis of the video and a search for other footage. 
 
Cohen noted that the person had keys to enter from the neighboring space and seemed familiar with the gallery, as the whole incident took less than a couple of minutes. 
 
Methuselah is closed on Sundays. 
 
While all parties hope to track down the person who did this, the main goal is to get Pelkey's artwork back. 
 
"The New Gunfighter in Town" features a man in a red shirt shooting through saloon doors and is 30 by 24 inches. "The Cubist Bounty Hunter" shows a figure in Mandalorian style armor shooting a gun with vibrantly colored action lines around it and is 18 by 14 inches. Both are oil on canvas. 
 
The abutting storefront at 393 North St. has formerly housed Shire Glass and Omega 1 African Fashion.  

Tags: theft,   

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Bus Organized to People's March

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — State Reps. Tricia Farley-Bouvier and Leigh Davis, state Sen. Paul Mark, and the Rural Freedom Network are organizing a motorcoach bus from the Berkshires to Washington, D.C., for the 2025 People's March.
 
Rural Freedom Network is a federally registered political action committee and as a grassroots media organization it supports Democratic candidates and issues such as civil rights.
 
The People's March is a rebranding of the Women's March that first occurred in 2017 and broadened to include such rights to free speech, health care and economics.
 
The bus departs on Saturday, Jan. 18, at 2 a.m. from the parking lot of The Center at Lenox (Price Chopper) on Route
7/20 and returns around 1 a.m. on Sunday, Jan.19.
 
Bus tickets are purchased through a $75 per ticket donation to the Rural Freedom Network. Reserve a seat and purchase a ticket here. For more information, contact Mirabai Dyson at mirabai.dyson@mahouse.gov.
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