A gathering of environmental activists who have disturbed significant displays this week to make a statement to the U.K. government has struck yet again – this time at the Royal Academy of Art in London.
Like an annoying villain that doesn’t know when to quit they assembled again on Tuesday morning, demonstrators from JSO also known as Just Stop Oil not only spray painted the edge marking property up and vandalizing it, but they also glued themselves to the edge of the famous painting by Leonardo Da Vinci – The Last Supper.
You might have seen the painting before in movies, in museums, or on the internet. The painting depicts the scene of the Last Supper with Jesus when the Twelve Apostles all shared bread and wine which would later become a communion. The bread represented Jesus’ body which would be broken for them, and the wine represented His blood where he’d later be the ultimate sacrificial lamb for everyone’s sins. In this scene, he also calls out one of his followers who would soon betray him. The entire history can be read in the Bible in the Gospel of John.
While this painting is not the original and a duplicate it still holds value and meaning, and to any artist or anyone who appreciates art, this cuts deep. This movement was done because the individuals wanted to make a statement that we need to save the planet, and they are calling on the U.K. government to obstruct licenses for future oil and gas extraction and cautioning of a grim future if action is not immediately taken to slow and stop climate change.
While sure the climate is not the best at the moment these smart individuals couldn’t have come up with any other way to help their cause and get their voices heard? This seems childish, and the amount of disrespect being displayed is just about as legendary as the picture they glued themselves to. With the world the way it is I wonder how long people like this will start to do things like this to Bibles and other things that depict or speak of God.
As indicated by The Independent, a heretic at the display likened the public authority to Jesus’ traitor Judas, and stated that Just Stop Oil had chosen this “magnificent beautiful painting” because what’s to come is “bleaker than ever.” Four ‘protesters’ remained for over three hours in the room where the artwork is housed, which was shut to the public due to the exhibition, before they were taken out by police, as per the display. The representative added that the state of the work of art is being evaluated by Royal Academy conservators.
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I don’t know about you, but there are many other things I could do with three hours of my time than deface something and beg for attention in the name of climate change. There are so many routes anyone could take to make a change for the better, but they felt this is the best way. Why is it when people want to make change for the better, they feel as though they have to destroy things such as buildings, and shops, hurt others, and now mess up paintings?
This isn’t even the end of it, there have been four other incidences from the same group doing the same thing – gluing themselves to famous artwork. I’m not sure about everyone else, but I wouldn’t want to glue myself to anything in the name of anything and think that much would be done; and the others who were near, instead of doing or saying something, just whip out their cameras and phones to record it all. These sure are different times we are living in.