Activist Glues Head to Vermeer's 'Girl with a Pearl Earring'
The latest artwork to be targeted in an attempt to raise awareness to climate change.
A climate activist glued his head to Johannes Vermeer’s iconic Girl with a Pearl Earring painting at The Hague’s Mauritshuis museum. The incident occurred earlier today, where a video published via social media shows the man glueing his head to the glass protecting the painting, while another pours a can of tomato soup over him.
“How do you feel when you see something beautiful and priceless apparently being destroyed before your eyes?” asked one of the Just Stop Oil protestors shortly after pouring the soup. “Do you feel outraged? Good. Where is that feeling when you see the planet being destroyed?”
BREEK – Meisje met de parel van Johannes Vermeer besmeurd in #Mauritshuis. pic.twitter.com/XzAZTOoBv9
— Steven Bakker (@Kolpen) October 27, 2022
The latest incident follows a series of similar occurrences that have shaken the art world, where nearly two weeks ago, Just Stop Oil threw tomato soup at Vincent Van Gogh’s Sunflowers painting, and another German activist group tossed mashed potatoes at Claude Monet’s Grainstacks artwork.
“Art is defenceless,” wrote a statement by the museum, “and the Mauritshuis strongly rejects trying to damage it for whatever purpose.”
The three protestors were arrested by Dutch officials on charges of “public violence against goods”.
