Van Gogh vandalism: Just Stop Oil activists throwing soup at the National Gallery

On Friday at the National Gallery in London, "Just Stop Oil" activists threw soup on a Vincent van Gogh painting. Immediately, shouts of shocked visitors echoed through the gallery: "Oh no!", "Oh God! Why are you doing this?" The incident occurred shortly after the court sentenced two activists from the same group to prison.

Three "Just Stop Oil" activists threw soup on two Van Gogh paintings at the National Gallery. Both depict sunflowers. The activists were detained.

The attack took place just a few hours after the sentencing of two activists, Phoebe Plummer and Anna Holland, for a similar act of vandalism in 2022.

Twenty-three-year-old Plummer and twenty-two-year-old Holland threw canned tomato soup on a glass-protected painting and then glued themselves to the wall under it.

According to the prosecution, the soup caused damage to the frame worth up to $12,000, although the painting itself was not damaged and returned to the exhibit the same day. Plummer was sentenced to two years in prison and Holland to 20 months.

Active in the United Kingdom since February 2022, the "Just Stop Oil" group, which demands an end to fossil fuels, has gained notoriety through a series of protests where activists glued themselves to roads, blocking traffic, disrupting sports and cultural events, and throwing orange paint on bank windows, paintings in museums, and monuments.