The two activists then attached themselves to the wall.
Climate activists dragged an Emily Carr painting of maple syrup from the Vancouver Art Gallery on Saturday afternoon (November 12).
Two climate activists, Erin Fletcher and another person from the activist group Stop Fracking Around, poured maple syrup over Carr’s “Stumps and Sky” painting in the gallery and then stuck it to the wall.
According to the Vancouver Police Department (VPD), the two women then “posed for a third person who appeared to be taking photos or videos,” writes Sgt. Addison in an email to VIA, adding that staff at the Vancouver Art Gallery called police the afternoon after the incident.
The event is to “demand an end to the Coastal GasLink pipeline on unceded Wet’suwet’en lands” and draw attention to drilling under the Wedzin Kwa River in northern BC, says a news release from the group.
“We are taking this action after Memorial Day to remind ourselves of the countless deaths that have taken place, and will continue to take place, due to the greed, corruption and incompetence of our leaders,” Fletcher says, adding that ” the Wet’suwet “The nation has made it very clear that they do not want this pipeline on their unceded lands.”
The group also says it is acting on a statement by First World War Canadian Corps Commander Julian Byng that “in an emergency, the man who does something is sometimes wrong, but the “man who does nothing is always wrong”.
“We believe we know who the women are and will conduct a full investigation,” writes Sgt. Addison. “No arrests have been made at this time.”
An official statement from the Vancouver Art Gallery confirms that two people vandalized the painting, which is part of the gallery’s permanent collection.
“We support the free expression of ideas, but not at the cost of suppressing other people’s ideas and artistic expressions, or preventing people from accessing those ideas.” says Anthony Kiendl, Director and CEO of the Vancouver Art Gallery.
The statement also adds that staff believe no permanent damage has been done to the artwork.