Two supporters of the climate activist group "Letzte Generation" ("Last generation") have attacked this Sunday with mashed potatoes against a painting by Claude Monet, from the series "Les meules" ("The haystacks") exhibited at the Museum Barberini of Potsdam, near Berlin.
In a statement released by the activist group, they point out that with their action "they pose to society the same question that two brave young women asked in the National Gallery in London with tomato soup a week ago: What is worth more, art or life?".
"More and more people refuse to accept in silence the progressive destruction and endangerment of human life on our planet," the activists say.
The painting was not damaged during the action, "quite the opposite of the immeasurable suffering that floods, storms and droughts already bring us today as a harbinger of the imminent catastrophe," they add.
The museum's spokeswoman, Carolin Stranz, confirmed in statements to the regional network RBB that two activists had thrown mashed potatoes at the Monet painting and that the painting had not been affected.
For his part, a police spokesman said that the two activists then stuck to a wall in the exhibition hall, although they were "detached" and temporarily detained.
An investigation has been opened for damage to property and trespassing.
The painting, protected by glass, dates from 1890 and passed to the Hasso Plattner collection of the Barberini Museum in 2019 after being acquired for 110.7 million dollars at a Sotheby's auction.
"My heart stopped when I found out about the action," said the museum's spokeswoman, who specified that it is the most expensive Monet painting ever sold.
The room was closed and an expert is examining the artwork for possible damage.
Already last week, members of the organization "Just Stop Oi" poured tomato soup on Van Gogh's "Sunflowers" at the National Gallery Museum in London.
Today's action was received with misunderstanding by representatives of regional politics.
"This is cultural barbarism and not a political statement. You are harming your cause," the mayor of Potsdam, Social Democrat Mike Schubert, wrote on Twitter.
The Environment Minister of the federal state of Brandenburg, the green Ursula Nonnemacher, stated on Twitter that "the fight against the climate crisis is not strengthened by attacks on famous paintings" and added that on the contrary, what is needed is a " broad social consensus.
The regional Minister of Culture, the Social Democrat Manja Schüle, pointed out on the same social network that with their action the activists "do a disservice" to the "giant task of climate protection" and "deliberately destroy" cultural treasures.
In just 14 days, activists in the fight against climate change have attacked prominent works of art to draw attention to global warming.
In all three cases the perpetrators were activists trying to draw attention to the climate crisis.
