UK museum directors have written an open letter calling for an end to protests which target galleries and artworks. The demonstrations “have to stop,” they say, pointing to the emotional toll taken by staff and the public. “These attacks cause enormous stress for colleagues at every level of an organisation, along with visitors who no longer feel safe visiting the Nation’s Museums and Galleries.”
It comes from the National Museum Directors’ Council, the influential body that represents the heads of the UK’s most significant collections—including the National Gallery and British Museum—as well as major regional museums.
UK museum directors have issued a stark warning as protests against artworks continue escalating, with recent National Gallery actions raising particular alarm. Since July, the environmental group Just Stop Oil has organised several demonstrations at the gallery, covering iconic works, including John Constable’s The Hay Wain, Diego Velázquez’s Rokeby Venus and Vincent van Gogh’s Sunflowers.
At the beginning of the week, two protesters from the group Youth Demand were arrested after draping Picasso’s Motherhood (La Maternité) of 1901 with a photograph of a Gazan mother and child. Although the painting was not damaged, the stunt has heightened concerns about the safety of visitors and works of art in the UK’s most popular cultural venues.
Directors, through the National Museum Directors’ Council (NMDC), said they felt compelled to act after these latest disruptions, which they say are endangering the safety and enjoyment of public museums.
NMDC letter on protests at museums 11 Oct 2024
“We are writing as members of the National Museum Directors’ Council (NMDC), representing the leaders of the UK’s national collections and major regional museums.
Over the past few years, UK museums and galleries, the artworks they contain, and by extension, the people who visit and those who work there have increasingly become the targets of protest action.
Whilst we respect the right for people to protest and are often sympathetic to the cause, these attacks must stop. They are hugely damaging to the reputation of UK museums and cause enormous stress for colleagues at every level of an organisation, along with visitors who no longer feel safe visiting the nation’s finest museums and galleries.
Since July 2022, the National Gallery has been the victim of five separate attacks on iconic paintings such as Vincent van Gogh’s Sunflowers, John Constable’s The Haywain and Velázquez’s Rokeby Venus. Such attacks have caused physical damage to the artworks, distress to visitors and staff alike, and disruption to our collective mission to ensure great art and artefacts are available for everyone, everywhere, to enjoy. Two of these attacks have happened in the last two weeks, so we have decided now is the moment for us to speak out.
Our UK museums and galleries are an integral part of society, where free access allows everyone to be inspired by humanity’s most outstanding achievements. The collections we hold are irreplaceable, and with each attack, we are forced to consider putting more barriers between the people and their artworks to preserve these fragile objects for future generations. The inspiration these museums provide is invaluable and must be protected.
The world is very dark, but these demonstrations must be urgently removed from our museums and galleries. Only then can these institutions continue to provide light and solace to all.”
Top Photo Courtesy Just Stop Oil