10 Iconic Artworks That Have Been Attacked

Recent months have seen several newsworthy incidents involving attacks on art. In July, climate activists glued themselves to a replica of The Last Supper, which is believed to have been created by students of Leonardo da Vinci, and wrote 'no new oil' beneath it. Then, in May, the Mona Lisa made headlines when a museum-goer smeared cake on the protective glass surrounding the renowned painting. This event was just the latest in a series of assaults on the Leonardo da Vinci masterpiece.

However, these artworks are far from the only ones to have been victims of vandalism over the years. Here is a timeline of some of the most notorious defacements in art history.

1. Portrait of Henry James // John Singer Sargent

John Singer Sargent and writer Henry James shared mutual admiration for each other's work. When Sargent painted James's portrait in 1913, he waived his usual fee, and James later declared the portrait a 'masterpiece.'

The following year, a suffragette named Mary Aldham (also known as Mary Wood) attacked the portrait with a meat cleaver when it was displayed at London's Royal Academy, leaving three gashes in the painting. She was one of many activists who protested women's denial of the right to vote by vandalizing art. James, reflecting on the incident, wrote, 'I naturally feel very scalped and disfigured, but you will be glad to know that I seem to be pronounced curable.' Fortunately, Sargent was able to restore the work.

2. Christ of Saint John of the Cross // Salvador Dalí

In 1952, Tom Honeyman, the director of Glasgow's art galleries and museums, purchased Salvador Dalí's portrayal of Christ on the cross for display at the Kelvingrove Art Gallery in the Scottish city. He spent £8,200 (approximately £251,000 or nearly $300,000 in 2022). Today, the painting is cherished as a key part of the city's art scene. However, at the time, its purchase sparked controversy. Critics claimed it was an extravagant waste of money, while others voiced even more radical objections.

Two incidents of vandalism occurred. The first was in 1961, when a 22-year-old man attacked the painting, first with a stone and then with his bare hands. Later, in the early 1980s, another man shot it with an air rifle. Fortunately, no harm was done, thanks to the protective acrylic glass installed after the first attack.

3. Pietà // Michelangelo

Michelangelo's 'Pietà' is one of his most renowned sculptures and, notably, the only artwork he ever signed. Sadly, this masterpiece was not the only 'signature' left on the piece. On May 21, 1972, a man named Laszlo Toth managed to bypass security and attacked the sculpture with a hammer. While shouting that he was Jesus Christ, he caused significant damage. Due to his mental health condition, Toth was not prosecuted but was instead sent to a mental institution for two years.

4. The Night Watch // Rembrandt

Similar to the Mona Lisa, Rembrandt's The Night Watch has been attacked multiple times, with some incidents resulting in permanent damage. A particularly severe attack occurred in 1975 when a vandal armed with a knife slashed the painting with cuts over two feet long. In 1990, it was targeted once again, this time by a man carrying a chemical substance. Fortunately, the damage was minimal, as by then, the Rijksmuseum had implemented round-the-clock security to protect the artwork from potential vandals.

5. Lamentation of Christ // Albrecht Dürer

Some artworks have fallen victim to serial art vandals over the years. Hans-Joachim Bohlmann was one such individual: He vandalized several works by iconic artists such as Rembrandt, Paul Klee, Lucas Cranach the Elder, and Peter Paul Rubens. After being sentenced to five years in prison for his initial attacks, Bohlmann continued his destructive behavior post-release, splashing acid on three pieces by Albrecht Dürer, including the Lamentation of Christ, at a Munich museum in 1988.

6. Colored Vases // Ai Weiwei

Ai Weiwei's work explores the complex relationship between artistic destruction as a form of expression and blatant acts of vandalism. In 1995, he created a series of three photographs documenting the destruction of a 2000-year-old urn, titled Dropping a Han Dynasty Urn. Later, he produced Colored Vases, a series where he applied paint to several Neolithic vases. Both bodies of work came full circle when someone destroyed one of his own artworks.

In 2014, an artist named Maximo Caminero visited a Miami gallery where Dropping a Han Dynasty Urn was displayed alongside the Colored Vases. Caminero deliberately smashed one of Ai's vases in front of the photographs depicting the destruction of the Han urn. He argued that it was an act of protest against the gallery’s insufficient support for the local art community, not a critique of Ai's work. The courts, however, rejected his defense, sentencing Caminero to probation and a $10,000 fine.

7. Le Pont d'Argenteuil // Claude Monet

Le Pont d'Argenteuil, an iconic Impressionist painting by Claude Monet, depicting boats on the river Seine, was attacked in 2007 at the Musée d'Orsay in Paris. In the dead of night, five individuals broke into the museum, and one of them punched a 4-inch hole into the artwork. Unlike many other art attacks, this act was not motivated by protest, but rather by the vandals being intoxicated. Although the alarm was triggered, the intruders escaped without being apprehended. The incident sparked calls in France for harsher penalties for those who damage art.

8. Phaedrus // Cy Twombly

Art can be defaced in various ways, even through something as simple as a kiss. In 2007, artist Rindy Sam left a lipstick mark on Phaedrus, a white canvas, while wearing red lipstick. Sam claimed the kiss was a gesture of love, not vandalism, but the gallery disagreed. Despite using 30 different cleaning products, the lipstick stain couldn't be fully removed. As a result, Sam was fined 1,500 euros for her actions.

9. The Thinker // Auguste Rodin

The Thinker, one of Auguste Rodin's most iconic sculptures, has been reproduced in multiple casts and is displayed in various locations worldwide. One of these replicas, displayed in Buenos Aires, Argentina, became the target of vandalism in 2011 when it was spray-painted pink and adorned with a tattoo. The incident sparked controversy, with some people arguing that the restoration efforts that followed the attack only caused additional harm to the sculpture.

10. Black on Maroon // Mark Rothko

Mark Rothko, celebrated for his extraordinary use of color, had his work Black on Maroon targeted by an artist seeking to promote his own art movement, “yellowism.” Vladimir Umanets defaced the painting at London’s Tate Modern by painting his name and the phrase “A Potential Piece of Yellowism” in black. Fortunately, the damage was repaired, and the piece was returned to the exhibition in 2014.