'Mona Lisa': Protesters throw soup at Louvre painting in Paris

CNN
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Protesters threw soup”Mona LisaThe painting was in Paris on Sunday, but it was protected from damage by a glass case.

Environmental group Riposte Alimentaire – which roughly translates to “food response” – said two protesters involved in its campaign were behind the vandalism.

A Video The incident showed protesters throwing orange soup from bottles and addressing the audience under a security barrier. “What is more important: art or the right to healthy and sustainable food?” one hears asking.

Staff at the Louvre could be seen moving black screens between visitors and protesters.

The museum evacuated the “Salle des Etats” room where the “Mona Lisa” is located, but it has since reopened.

“Two activists from the environmental movement 'Riposte Alimentaire' sprayed pumpkin soup on the protective glass that protects the Mona Lisa this Sunday, January 28, 2024, at 10 a.m. (4 a.m. ET),” the museum's statement said. “The Louvre's security staff immediately intervened.”

The museum said it had filed a complaint.

In a series of social media posts about the event, Riposte Alimentaire said it wanted to draw attention to unsustainable food production and hunger in France, calling for “the integration of food into the general social security system”.

According to its website, Riposte Alimentaire is part of the A22 Network, a collection of activist groups – including Just Stop Oil; A similar attack Vincent van Gogh's “Sunflower” in London in 2022 – known for disruptive climate protests.

While this incident is spreading Demonstrations By French farmers about wages, competition and government regulations.

Posting to X, formerly known as Twitter, French Culture Minister Rachida Tati condemned the Louvre protest. “The Mona Lisa, like our heritage, belongs to future generations,” he said wrote. “No reason can justify being targeted!”

“I give my full support to the staff of the @museeLouvre,” said Tati, who was appointed culture minister by France's new prime minister Gabriel Attall earlier this month.

Leonardo da Vinci's masterpiece “Mona Lisa” hangs in the Louvre Museum. The most famous painting in the world. Each year millions of visitors line up to see, photograph or pose with the tiny artwork, which is more than 2.5 feet tall and less than 2 feet wide.

Painted in the early 16th century, the mysterious portrait is no stranger to both vandalism and theft.

It was Stolen in 1911 A Louvre employee raised its international profile, and in the 1950s the underside of the canvas was exposed to an acid attack, leading the museum to increase security measures around the work, including bulletproof glass.

In 2009, a woman angrily threw a ceramic cup at the painting, breaking the cup but leaving the painting unharmed.

Then in 2022, a visitor Coated frosting Protection glass of Renaissance painting throughout.

CNN's Jacqui Palumbo contributed to this report.