Attack.

Three striking sculptures, including two by Maltese artist Andrew Diacono, were stolen last weekend during the Sliema Street Art Festival.

Festival curator Claude Camilleri said the pieces were taken last Friday when all the artwork, which had been on show during the festival, was being packed up.

“These three pieces were the last ones I was going to load in my car as they were the most delicate and then they weren’t there anymore,” Mr Camilleri said.

A police report was immediately filed and an investigation is underway. The theft occurred at around 1.15am on Saturday morning.

The two pieces by Mr Diacono, which belonged to his personal collection, are called Walking the Dog and Old Man. Made of “mixed media” including plaster, paint and metal, the sculptures are a perfect example of Mr Diacono’s quirky style.

The third stolen piece is called Attack and was created by Serbian artist Tijana Raskovic. It shows a woman kneeling with her legs open as fish swim towards her.

They were the last ones I was going to load

Mr Camilleri said he was gutted at what had happened. “Mr Diacono put his soul into the pieces and it’s like a piece of you was stolen,” he said.

In fact, Mr Diacono said he was “very shocked” and made a public appeal on Facebook for anyone with information to approach him or the Sliema police. “All my work has a special meaning to me – I just want to put it behind me… I mean, what does one do?” he said.

Mr Camilleri described what happened as “very sad” and said it dampened the morale of all the artists who took part in the three-day festival. However, the overwhelming response among the artists who shared what had happened online “was really special”.

The arts and culture community “is alive and this is wonderful and this is how we will remember the festival”, he added.