On Oct. 14, 2022, at the National Art Gallery in London, two climate protesters went to throw tomato soup at Vincent van Gogh’s famous painting “Sunflowers” to protest the extraction and use of fossil fuels. The protesters are members of Just Stop Oil, a coalition of groups working together to ensure the governmental commitment of halting new fossil fuel licensing and production. They believe that in order to ensure humans’ survival, people need to end the reliance on fossil fuels. 

Two of the protesters went to the National Art Gallery wearing t-shirts bearing the name of the group Just Stop Oil, and proceeded to throw two cans of tomato soup at Vincent van Gogh’s “Sunflowers” painting. They then  proceeded to glue their hands to the wall, as people yelled in shock.        

One of the activists, 21-year-old Phoebe Plummer, began to speak to the room saying “What is worth more: art or life? Is it worth more than food? Worth more than justice?” Plummer continued on to talk about how people were so concerned about the protection of paintings while there are families in the world that can’t even afford to heat a can of soup.    

One of the other activists yelled, “are you more concerned about the protection of a painting, or the protection of our planet and people?” Both activists continued on to talk about the overuse of fossil fuels and its contribution to climate change, while bystanders became more concerned about the iconic painting. Many people were in shock, and soon both 20-year-old Anna Holland and Phoebe Plummer were arrested for their protest. 

The National Art Gallery said in their statement that the painting itself was not damaged because it was covered by a protective glass, but there was “some minor damage to the frame.” The Art Gallery didn’t seem to be concerned with the issue considering the painting was protected, but there are still many people who are upset about the incident. There are some who feel that how they protested was simply idiotic, and others who support the cause but feel that it was poorly executed.      

This wasn’t the first time that Just Stop Oil activists tried to bring attention to their cause. In June, Just Stop Oil activists glued themselves to Horatio McCulloch’s “My Heart’s in the Highlands” at the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum in Glasgow, and have glued themselves to about half a dozen other artworks. Even though they have made multiple attempts to vandalize famous paintings, none of them compared to the amount of attention they received from vandalizing the van Gogh painting.   

Mel Carrington, a spokeswoman for Just Stop Oil, mentioned how this form of protest has been the only way they have been able to spark some recognition for their cause. “We tried sitting in the roads, we tried blocking oil terminals, and we got virtually zero press coverage, yet the thing that gets the most press is chucking some tomato soup on a piece of glass covering a masterpiece,”Carrington said. What Carrington least expected was for the tactic to become what Just Stop Oil is known for.  

So in the end, have the protesters proved their point? Or did they cause more damage to their cause?