On Friday, two climate activists shocked guests at London’s National Gallery when they threw two cans of tomato soup on Vincent van Gogh’s “Sunflowers” painting.
According toABC News, the activists are members ofJust Stop Oil, a group that has staged similarstuntsto demand the British government halt new oil and gas licenses to help slow climate change. The organization shared footage from the museum on social media.
JUST STOP OIL HANDOUT/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
“The 100 proposed oil and gas licences will destroy all of our culture, along with human civilisation as we know it,” the message continued. “Why are we protecting these paintings when we are not protecting the millions of lives that will be lost due to climate and societal collapse?”
PHOTO: JUST STOP OIL HANDOUT/EPA-EFE/ShutterstockPHOTO: JUST STOP OIL HANDOUT/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
After throwing the soup at the painting, both activists squeezed glue onto one of their hands and stuck it on a wall.
“What is worth more, art or life?” one of the activists said in a video posted online. “Is it worth more than food? More than justice? Are you more concerned about the protection of a painting or the protection of our planet and people?”
“The cost of living crisis is part of the cost of oil crisis, fuel is unaffordable to millions of cold, hungry families,” she added. “They can’t even afford to heat a tin of soup.”
Police arrested both of the activists for criminal damage and aggravated trespassing, according toThe Guardian.
Six hours later, the painting was cleaned and back on display, theBBCreported.
RELATED VIDEO: Priyanka Chopra Jonas Says the World Is at ‘Critical Point’ During UN Speech About Climate Change
Activists around the glove have been gluing themselves to famous artworks to raise awareness about the dangers of climate change.
On Oct. 9,two climate change protestorsfrom the group Extinction Rebellionglued their handsto the protective layer covering Pablo Picasso’s"Massacre en Corée" (Massacre in Korea). In July, Just Stop Oil protestorsglued themselvesto a copy of Leonardo da Vinci’sThe Last Supperat London’sRoyal Academy of Arts.
In 2019, a series of studies published inNatureandNature Geoscienceclaimed that temperature rises around the planet over the last 150 years are part of a normal cycle in nature and that there was “no doubt” humans are playing a part in climate change.
source: people.com
