Last Friday, November 4, four climate activists threw vegetable soup at Vincent van Gogh’s “The Sower,” which is currently housed in Rome’s Palazzo Bonaparte Museum. The painting was not damaged since it is behind glass, like other recent international art targets of climate activism. Now Rome prosecutors have opened a probe into the attack, judicial sources said on Monday. Yet even though the offense carries a possible prison term of 5 years, the three young women are determinedly unrepentant.
A member of Ultima Generazione called Michele told ANSA: “We’re not bothered by the investigation and we’re going ahead because we want to highlight the responsibilities of the real criminals. The government is starting to fight us because it knows it is criminal and it is hiding its head in the sand. The Italian State is the sixth biggest investor of public money in fossil fuels as well as Saudi Arabia and Russia. It is not an accident that [UN chief Antonio] Guterres has just said that ‘humanity must make a choice: collaborate or die’. These are Guterres’ words, against a criminal government”.
Carabinieri said the three members of the Ultima Generazione [Last Generation] may face charges of “damaging, despoiling, vandalizing, and the illicit use of cultural goods”, but their mission does not end here. They are determined to force the government to accept blame for the role fossil fuels play in climate change.
Their acts of vandalism are largely symbolic and meant to bring attention to their cause because the paintings themselves, protected by glass, remain undamaged.
