VIDEO: Squirrel Caught Vandalizing Harlem Art Installation

HARLEM, NY — When artists behind a public installation at a Harlem's Colonel Charles Young Triangle tried to figure out who was vandalizing their work, they found an unexpected culprit: a park squirrel.

Michelle Bishop, founder of Harlem Needle Arts, went to the Harlem park on West 153rd Street after reports that a number of her organization's works adorning park benches had been ripped apart. When she arrived in the park, she caught the vandal red-pawed.

A gray squirrel, whom Bishop named "Nipsey," was tearing at one of the woven works and was nearly successful in ripping it completely off the bench. Bishop whipped out her phone and started to record the vandal, which tugged at the piece for more than 10 straight minutes.

"That squirrel is trying to get that to put in his home; it's hard out here for folks," Bishop says while recording the video. "We're not going to shoo the squirrel. What we're going to have to do is just remake this one. This is an interesting affair, but that squirrel is determined to take that off."

"Clearly, this squirrel is taking the authority," she says while recording.

Bishop shared her account of the event, aptly titled "The Tail of Nipsey Harlem," with the city Parks Department, which then sent it to Patch. She thinks the squirrel was trying to tear the crocheted artwork down to use the fibers as a warm nest. Eventually, Bishop and her daughter went to a nearby bodega, bought peanuts and used the snack to lure the squirrel away.

Bishop was able to cut the artwork loose as Nipsey feasted, leaving some of the scraps behind for the squirrel while preserving the rest of the work for repairs, according to her statement.

"With my daughter as lookout, I quickly cut part of the piece off and left smaller pieces for the Nipsey to take home to their homies," Bishop wrote. "As the holidays are coming, I guess Nipsey needed a blanket and sweaters for the family. It’s hard out here for a squirrel."

The artwork is part of a public art installation commissioned through the city Parks Department's Art in the Parks initiative. The work was designed by artist Nacinimod Deodee, who also designed two other pieces for the park. The project is part of Harlem Needle Arts' "We the People | Disrupting Silence" textile series, which honors the African diaspora of past and present.

Check out a video of Nipsey below: