Monet’s ‘Poppy Field’ painting became a whole lot less bucolic and rather more apocalyptic at the weekend, when an environmental campaigner stuck a poster – depicting a cataclysmic future vision of the pastoral scene – over the impressionist painter’s work.
The activist is part of the Riposte Alimentaire (Food Response) movement, which aims to promote action on climate change and sustainable agriculture. The group were also behind the attack on the Mona Lisain January, which saw protesters throw soup at the iconic artwork in the Louvre.
The group said the red-hued poster was meant to show what the field would look like in 2100, “ravaged by flames and drought,” if more action isn’t taken against climate change.
In a video of the incident, the activist said: “This nightmarish image awaits us if no alternative is put in place.”
The woman was detained pending investigation, according to Paris police, though it is not clear whether the painting sustained any damage.
Other key instances in a wave of eco-protests in museums and galleries include tomato soup being splashed on Van Gogh’s ‘Sunflowers’ and a mashed potato attack on Monet’s ‘Haystacks’.
