A man entered the Louvre Museum in Paris while dressed as an elderly woman and using a wheelchair. When made it to the Mona Lisa, he hurled a cake at the masterpiece.
Apparently, the man who hurled baked goods at the Leonardo da Vinci painting described as “the best known, the most visited, the most written about, the most sung about, the most parodied work of art in the world” was doing so to protest climate change.
“Think of the Earth. There are people who are destroying the Earth,” said the man as he was escorted away from police, as reported The Daily Caller. “Think about it. Artists tell you: think of the Earth. That’s why I did this,” he continued while being forced away. Apparently the man also threw roses on the floor of the Louvre.
The Mona Lisa was left shaken but unharmed when a visitor to the Louvre tried to smash the glass protecting the world's most famous painting, before smearing cream across its surface in an apparent climate-related publicity stunt https://t.co/4ZrGg0tXSK pic.twitter.com/56eXIGJf3h
— Reuters (@Reuters) May 30, 2022
The museum acknowledged the attempted act of vandalism in a statement in which they noted that the attack failed. The historic painting is protected by bulletproof glass.
“A visitor simulated a disability in order to use a wheelchair to approach the work, which was installed in a secure display case. The Louvre applied its usual procedures for people with reduced mobility, allowing them to admire this major work of art,” the Louvre Museum said in a statement.
“While standing near the painting, this individual threw a pastry he had hidden in his personal belongings at the Mona Lisa’s glass case,” they explained, per CNN.
“This act had no effect on the painting, which was not damaged in any way.”
A bizarre incident occurred at the Louvre Museum in Paris yesterday as a man in disguise smeared a cake over the Mona Lisa.
The man responsible for the incident claims to be an environmental protester.
See more 👇 (via @lukeXC2002) pic.twitter.com/rmgXN8HBY2
— Euronews Culture (@euronewsculture) May 30, 2022
The climate change activist has been arrested, the outlet reports, and the Louvre has filed a complaint. French authorities say he is charged with “the attempt of damaging a cultural property.”
The painting, known for its subject’s mysterious smile and unknown identity, was painted in oil between 1503 and 1506, but possibly was finished as late as 1517. It has been on permanent display at the Louvre in Paris since 1797.
