A POPULAR artist who has had artwork displayed at The Frame Gallery in Odiham has had £200,000 worth of paintings stolen in a Hampshire zoo raid.

Hampshire Police are investigating after works of art totalling over £160,000 from the former Odiham Frame exhibitionist Pip McGarry, were stolen from Marwell Zoo, Owslebury.

Thieves broke into the zoo gift shop between 6pm on Thursday, December 8, and 8.30am the following day, and made off with 10 paintings, including one named Young Snow Leopard (pictured) which carries a value of £34,000.

Mr McGarry told The Herald that “it’s really difficult and frustrating” but is thankful for the messages of goodwill and sympathy he has received.

“I don’t know what goes through the minds of these people, but I have reported it to the Missing Art List so they will now become very difficult to sell at auction, online or eBay for example without being traced.”

Mr McGarry has had his gallery at Marwell for over two years, with many of the pieces painted from photographs taken on safari in Tanzania and Botswana. However with over 500,000 visitors a year to the zoo, he fears the worst when it comes to tracking down possible suspects.

Of five solo shows held in Odiham, Mr McGarry has had four where sales have broken the £100,000 barrier and is full of praise for owner Jan Baker and the gallery’s atmosphere.

Having had an ITV Meridian wildlife show over 10 years ago, as well as hundreds of contacts thanks to the Marwell Wildlife International Art Society, the hope is there will be enough people keeping an eye out for the paintings to help find them and Hampshire Police are appealing for anyone with any information to come forward.

Detective Constable Alex Hall, who is investigating the crime, said: “I am appealing for anyone who knows the whereabouts of these valuable works of art to contact me.

“These paintings represent a considerable amount of work for the artist who is devastated by their loss.

“Additionally the sale of these paintings would have benefited the zoo as a proportion of any sale is donated to them”.

Anyone with information on the burglary is asked to contact Dc Hall in the Northern Investigation Team on 101 or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.