Environmental activists tried unsuccessfully Friday in Oslo to stick their hands on “The Scream”, the emblematic masterpiece of Norwegian painter Edvard Munch, to denounce against the oil industry in Norway, police said.
Guards from the National Museum in Oslo intervened and the painting, protected by glass, was not damaged, police said in the Norwegian capital on Twitter.
“I scream when people die! shouted one of the two people arrested during the action, according to Norwegian media. “I scream when politicians ignore science,” shouted the other.
The incident, which took place around 10:30 GMT, is the latest in a now long series of actions by climate activists in several major museums around the world, to denounce the lack of attention suffered according to them the climatic cause.
“We are at the national museum after a call from the guards. They overpowered three people, two of whom tried to stick to the board,” Oslo police said.
“They didn’t succeed, but there are traces of glue on the glass. No damage reported for the painting”.
An organization called ‘Stop Oil Exploration’ claimed the action from Norwegian cultural magazine Tidens ånd, saying it was intended to ‘wake people up from their apathy’ in order to ‘get the debate we want have “.
Norwegian Culture Minister Anette Trettebergstuen called the action “unacceptable”.
Norway is by far the largest oil producer in Western Europe, and faces growing criticism over oil exploitation.
Dating from 1893, Munch’s work has become the symbol of existential angst. It shows a human-like face holding its head in its hands, expressing horror with a swirling sky as a backdrop.
Nearly 100 major museums around the world released a joint statement on Thursday saying that activists targeting the works “seriously underestimate” the damage they can cause.
In recent weeks, pro-climate activists have for example stuck their hands on a painting by Goya in Madrid or on Andy Warhol’s famous “Campbell’s Soup” screen print on display in Australia, splashed tomato soup on the “Sunflowers by Van Gogh in London, and smeared mashed potatoes on a masterpiece by Claude Monet in Potsdam, near Berlin.
The action in Oslo coincides with Egypt’s annual UN climate summit, COP27.