Two young activists testified this Saturday before a British court, following this Friday they threw tomato soup on the painting The sunflowers the Vincent Van Goghat the National Gallery in London, in protest at the oil and gas development projects announced by the British Government.
Anna Holland, 20, and Phoebe Plummer, 21, have pleaded not guilty appearing before District Judge Tan Irkam, who released them on bail to await their trial on 13 December in London.
The activists, from the civil disobedience group “Just Stop Oil”entered the National Gallery and threw two cans of Heinz soup on the canvas, painted in 1888 by the Dutch impressionist painter and valued at 84.2 million dollars.
The painting itself was not affected, as it was protected by glass, but the frame was, which suffered “minor damage”, the gallery announced.
After throwing the soup on the painting by the painter, an exponent of post-impressionism, the protesters glued themselves to the wall of the art gallery. For this reason the activists were accused of “criminal damage”as announced by Scotland Yard.
The objectives of the action
With this action, “Just Stop Oil” sought to demand that the British government stop all new hydrocarbon exploitation projects in the country, according to the environmental organization in a statement.
This last action of the group was carried out within the framework of a month of protests and mobilizations throughout the British capital. “The cost of living crisis comes from fossil fuels, daily life has become unaffordable for millions of families who are cold and hungry, they can’t even afford a can of soup,” said Phoebe Plummer, a 21-year-old activist cited in a group statement.
“People are dying” because of “fires and droughts caused by climate change,” added the activist, stating: “we cannot afford new oil and gas projects.”
The sunflowers It is the second most famous work by Van Gogh attacked by “Just Stop Oil”, two of whose activists latched onto the 1889 painting “Peach Trees in Bloom”, exhibited at the Courtauld Gallery in London, at the end of June.