Food security activists in France hurled soup at the Mona Lisa on Sunday, but it was protected by the glass casing covering the artwork.
The Louvre Museum said in a statement following the incident, “Two activists from the environmental movement ‘Riposte Alimentaire’ sprayed pumpkin soup on the armoured glass protecting the Mona Lisa.”
Vanity Fair reported that a security video caught the women throwing liquid “onto the well-shielded 16th-century painting, as the crowd in the Salle des Etats display area gasps.”
The activists were speaking in French, which The New York Times translated to, “What is more important? Art or the right to have a healthy and sustainable food system?”
The BBC reported that the activists also said, “Our agricultural system is sick. Our farmers are dying at work.”
“The Louvre’s security staff immediately intervened,” the museum said in its released statement.
After the activists were reportedly led away by Louvre security, staffers were reported to be attempting “to hide the mess with black, cloth screens,” while other workers were evacuating onlookers from the room.
The exhibit was reopened later to visitors Sunday.
What is the Riposte Alimentaire movement?
The group that took responsibility for the protest, “Riposte Alimentaire,” made its statement as a call “for healthy and sustainable food,” Time reported.
CNN reported that Riposte Alimentaire said that “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.’”
In a social media post on X, Riposte Alimentaire wrote, “In France, one in three people skip meals due to lack of means. At the same time, 20% of the food produced is thrown away.”
Other protests by farmers have been reported, as some farmers blocked key roads that led in and out of Paris on Friday, according to the BBC.
This latest protest “will heighten security concerns ahead of the Paris Olympics,” according to the The New York Times.
“The Mona Lisa, like our heritage, belongs to future generations,” French Culture Minister Rachida Dati wrote in her statement condemning the protest. “No one can justify it being targeted!”
“I extend all my support to the staff of @museeLouvre,” Dati continued.