Two environmental activists smeared red paint on the window protecting a painting by Claude Monet on Wednesday before sticking their hands on it at the National Museum in Stockholm, police said. “The women, aged around 25 and 30, were arrested,” police said. The organization Aterställ Vatmarker (“Restore Wetlands”) claimed the action from Agence France-Presse. The work in question is “The Artist’s Garden at Giverny” (1900).
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The painting is being “examined by the museum’s conservation team to see if it has been damaged,” the museum said in a statement. According to its spokesperson, Hanna Tottmar, the team hopes to have “more information” on this by Thursday. Aterställ Vatmarker broadcast a video in which we can see two women, one a nurse and the other a student to become one, brushing red paint on the window behind which the work is located. They chant, in chorus, “the climate situation is urgent!” and “Our health is at risk!” “.
In an interview with AFP, the organization accused the Swedish government of not respecting its international commitments in terms of environmental policy. “We should reduce our emissions by 31%. But our emissions continue to increase. It’s outrageous,” said Helen Wahlgren, the group’s spokeswoman.