Vandal sprayed paint on work by Miriam Cahn that is supposed to send message against rape but has been accused of depicting pedophilia
On Monday, French President Emmanuel Macron denounced the vandalism of a controversial painting by Swiss artist Miriam Cahn displayed at Palais de Tokyo that some critics interpret as promoting pedophilia. The painting, titled “Fuck abstraction!,” was vandalized with purple spray paint at the Palais de Tokyo museum, where it has been exhibited since mid-February.
The painting depicts a small person with their hands bound behind their back being coerced into performing oral sex on a faceless and dominant man. While the artist, Miriam Cahn, has explained that the painting portrays rape as a weapon of war and a crime against humanity, some children's rights groups have condemned it as child pornography and promoting pedophilia. Macron declared on Twitter that attacking a work of art is an assault on French values, adding that artistic creation is always respected and protected in France. Despite legal attempts to remove the painting, the French courts have rejected them.
Anna Melnykova, "Palace of Labor (palats praci), architector I. Pretro, 1916", shot with analog Canon camera, 35 mm Fuji film in March 2022.
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