The stolen art. (
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A burglar swiped a $100,000 piece of “graffiti art” from a Chelsea building, cops said yesterday.
The suspect, wearing sunglasses, snatched the artwork — a 1999 Calvin Klein jeans ad featuring an acrylic image by artist KAWS — from the hallway of Complex magazine’s office on West 23rd Street at about 6 p.m. on Aug. 4.
The thief signed into the lobby as “Nat Heller,” and then entered a security code to access the doors on the second floor, said a rep for magazine founder and fashion designer Marc Ecko.
He smashed a fiberglass frame, rolled up the artwork, stuffed it into a white tube and slipped into the elevator. He was last seen walking west on 23rd Street.
“It’s definitely one of KAWS’ first pieces, so that makes it more important to Marc,” said his rep.
KAWS is the alias for Brooklyn-based artist Brian Donnelly, who currently has a sculpture displayed in front of The Standard hotel.