In Metz, France, two women spray red paint over the famous nude painting ‘The Origin of the World’. In their own words, they wanted to challenge art history. Six men on the scene were ‘predators’ and ‘censors’, an open letter said.
Gustave Courbet’s nude painting itself has caused outrage for 170 years. It is currently on display in an exhibition at the Center Pompidou in Metz – protected by a glass window. Art historians see this as a decisive step towards modernity and a break with tradition, as the vulva was depicted without any historical or mythological background.
Five paintings affected
Police now announce that two women born in 1986 and 1993 spray-painted the painting and three others. They wrote ‘MeToo’ about oil paintings, a term for sexual assault and male abuse of power. The statue was protected by a pane of glass and was therefore not damaged. The women were arrested.
“You don’t separate the woman from the artist”
A third person is said to have stolen an embroidery by a French artist from the exhibition. She’s still volatile.
Shortly after the crime, the French-Luxembourgish performance artist Deborah de Robertis wrote an open letter. She organized the vandalism, which was part of a feminist performance entitled ‘You do not separate the woman from the artist’. Women are the origin of the world.
Here you can view the tweet from the French Minister of Culture.
Artist not unknown
De Robertis is already known for his provocative actions. In 2018, she appeared naked in front of a grotto in Lourdes, a Catholic pilgrimage site. She was sentenced to a fine at the time. Another case against her was dismissed. The woman had shown her vagina in front of the Mona Lisa in the Louvre.
“A work of art is not a poster that you can paint with the message of the day,” criticized French Culture Minister Rachida Dati. The mayor of Metz spoke of an “attack on culture by fanatical feminists.”
Source: Krone
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