LONDON (AP) — On Friday, climate activists targeted a pair of famous paintings by Dutch master Vincent van Gogh at London’s National Gallery, splashing what appeared to be tomato soup on the artworks. This incident came shortly after the sentencing of two other activists involved in a similar protest two years prior.
The specific paintings affected belong to Van Gogh’s renowned “Sunflowers” series, created in Arles, France. Fortunately, the artworks remained unharmed due to protective glass shields. The National Gallery confirmed that the paintings involved were Sunflowers (1888) and Sunflowers (1889), both on loan from the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
Three activists from the group Just Stop Oil were apprehended during the incident. While the paintings were carefully removed and inspected, the gallery announced that the exhibition resumed later the same day.
This protest was reportedly a response to the recent sentencing of fellow activists Phoebe Plummer, 23, and Anna Holland, 22, who received sentences for their actions involving a “Sunflowers” painting in October 2022. Both women were found guilty of criminal damage after throwing cans of tomato soup at the piece and gluing their hands to the wall beneath it; Plummer was sentenced to two years and Holland to 20 months.
In both the recent and prior incidents, the activists donned T-shirts supporting Just Stop Oil, which advocates for halting new oil and gas projects across the UK. They have become known for their high-profile demonstrations, including disruptions at significant sporting events and transport networks.
In a video posted on social media during Friday’s protest, one of the activists declared their hope that future generations will view them as “prisoners of conscience” who were “on the right side of history.”
During the earlier 2022 incident, the frame of Van Gogh’s painting incurred significant damage estimated at £10,000 ($13,000). Museum staff expressed concerns about the potential for the soup to cause irreversible harm to the artwork. Judge Christopher Hehir, who presided over both cases, noted that the recent attack could have led to serious damage or destruction of the paintings.
In addressing Plummer during her sentencing, Judge Hehir criticized her belief that her convictions justified criminal actions: “You clearly think your beliefs give you the right to commit crimes when you feel like it. You do not.” Plummer, who represented herself and accepted her guilty plea, stated she would face the outcome “with a smile,” asserting that the verdict also represented a threat to the foundations of democracy.
Notably, just five days following her guilty verdict in July, Plummer was arrested again for spray-painting departure boards at Heathrow Airport. Meanwhile, lawyer Raj Chada, who defended Holland, emphasized that the activists ensured the “Sunflowers” paintings were shielded by glass before proceeding with their soup-throwing protest.
