An activist glued their head to the Dutch art ‘Girl With A Pearl Earring’ in an act of protest against oil companies.

Climate activists have been on a bit of a bender lately when it comes to throwing food and gluing themselves to various pieces of art in museums and to be clear, nothing they’ve done has actually damaged the art in any way.

The museum said: “We have immediately inspected the painting, which our restorers did. Fortunately, the painting was not damaged.”

Here’s what the protesters did as described by the Mauritshuis, “One person glued his head to the painting, which was behind glass, and the other person glued his hand to the green wall next to the painting.”

“A third person threw an unknown substance at the painting.”

While the effects of this type of protesting have very little data to support whether they are making positive or negative impacts on the intended audience, the immediate reactions to these stunts have often been negative.

When this particular climate activist glued their head to Johannes Vermeer’s art ‘Girl With A Pearl Earring,’ which hangs at the Mauritshuis museum in The Hague, the visitors reportedly shouted “shame” and “you’re stupid” as the activists read out their speeches. It’s kind of funny that what is likely a bunch of tourists, in an art museum, are berating a modern-day artistic expression against the existential threat of human-made ecological disaster.

While the activists may be creating an overall negative impact on people’s perception of climate change, their anger and frustration are understandable given the circumstances. When the systems of repression that our late-stage-capitalist world organization creates normalize climate destruction while that same system simultaneously engages in it, the weight can be maddening for those paying attention.

While I may not think that their methods are improving the audience’s perception of climate justice or anthropogenic climate change, I do agree with their message, something that hopefully isn’t lost in translation when you read articles such as these. Although, it is doubtful that other outlets will be as charitable.

To listen to their message, check out the Tweet embedded below.

To learn more about where responsibility in climate change exists watch this video here.

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