LONDON (TIP): Two Damien Hirst paintings worth £33,000 have been stolen from an art gallery in London. The signed artworks were stolen from the Exhibitionist Gallery in Notting Hill in the early hours of Monday. The two pieces, which form part of Hirst’s ‘spot paintings’, are painted with mutli-coloured dots on a white background.

The larger of the two artworks, “Pyronin Y”, was created in 2005 and is worth £15,000. The other painting, entitled “Oleoylsarcosine”, was created in 2008 and is valued at £18,000. A suspect entered the gallery by forcing the front doors and drove the items away in a dark-coloured hatchback-type vehicle, according to the police. Det Sgt Jon Lightfoot said: “It appears the suspect has specifically targeted the two pieces. The items would have been visible in the car and we are appealing for witnesses to come forward.”