Picasso painting vandalized at Menil Collection could be saved
The Menil Collection in Texas is attempting to save a painting by Pablo Picasso that was vandalized recently with spray paint. The incident, which was captured on video and posted to YouTube, involved a man using black spray paint to deface Picasso’s 1932 “Woman in Red Armchair.”
Soon after the incident, the Houston museum rushed the painting to its conservation lab where experts are attempting to save it, according to the Houston Chronicle. The vandal stenciled an image of a bull and the word “Conquista” on the painting.
The museum told the Associated Press that its chief conservator has been working on the painting since it was damaged on Wednesday. Police in Houston are investigating the incident, according to the AP.
CNN quoted a Menil Collection spokeswoman saying that “the prognosis is excellent” for the painting.
A YouTube video (warning: adult language) showing the act of vandalism lasts about 25 seconds and shows a figure dressed in dark clothes spray-painting the Picasso work and then walking away.
The Menil is one of the top art museums in the country and offers free admission to all visitors.
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