Tomato soup, mashed potatoes. Glue and red glop.

In the tumultuous landscape of 2022, amidst the backdrop of ever-intensifying climate change concerns, a unique form of protest emerged, shaking the very foundations of the art world. Activists, adorned in t-shirts emblazoned with poignant anti-oil slogans, took to the hallowed halls of renowned museums and galleries, their mission clear: to spark action on the climate crisis. Their canvas? Not the conventional streets or political arenas, but the revered masterpieces themselves.

In 2022 activist protests have been focused on widely admired art. Carried out by protestors demanding action on climate change. The activists target masterpieces that are so valuable and one-of-a-kind, to get one message across. Unless industrialized nations act quickly and radically to cut carbon emissions and stop all new oil and gas projects, the world will fall to pieces. 

None of the works targeted have had lasting damage as many are covered by glass. The climate activists are seemingly targeting the most famous works not to damage them, but to draw media attention to the lasting damage of the climate crisis. Directors of museums and galleries around the world are “deeply shaken” by the attacks. The activists throw mashed potatoes, tomato soup, and other substances on the artworks and glue themselves on the walls or the frames of the artworks. Most galleries and museums are being tight-lipped about the attacks, to avoid more attention to the protests.

Do I not condone the attacks on the artworks, it surely raises the question of what is valuable, and how this relates to general social issues. For this series, we choose to replicate some famous artworks and photograph them in an all-black on-black, oil-covered setting. While the protests themselves may have sparked controversy and condemnation, they also ignited a conversation long overdue. A conversation about the intersection of art and activism, of value and vulnerability, and of the urgent need for collective action in the face of planetary peril. As the world grappled with these questions, one thing became abundantly clear: the time for complacency had passed, and the time for action was now. Just Stop Oil!