Climate Activists Target Museums with Protest Actions, Questioning Art's Role in Environmental Crisis

Over the past year, climate activist groups like Just Stop Oil have organized prominent protests within museums, specifically targeting masterpieces by Van Gogh, Monet, and Vermeer. In an effort to attract social media coverage and urge governments to stop issuing new oil leases, activists have resorted to throwing food at artworks and gluing themselves to walls. Andreas Malm has characterized these protests as 'controlled political violence.' While these actions have not caused significant harm to the artworks, they have resulted in longer sentences for those arrested. The National Gallery in London has been a common venue for such demonstrations. Meanwhile, Extinction Rebellion is said to be reevaluating its strategies due to concerns about their effectiveness.