we just returned from the NY museum of modern art. i'm fascinated that the public can go right up to some of the most famous paintings in the world with nothing protecting them. i mean, some wacko could easily destroy them if he wanted to. what if some, innocently enough, sneezed on "starry night" by van gogh? it just boggles my mind.
2007-10-19 10:24:54 · 6 answers · asked by norbert 1 in Arts & Humanities ➔ Visual Arts ➔ Painting
You are SERIOUSLY mis-informed about those famous paintings having "nothing protecting them".
You simply cannot see the protection. There are metal detectors (you passed through them unknowingly), plain-clothed security officers in EVERY room watching EVERY "famous" painting, and of course - closed circuit TV. Anything larger than a backpack must be checked.
The number of patrons is regulated, so that security can handle all threats.
How do I know? I worked at the Art Institute of Chicago for 3 years while I was in college.
Oh, and by the way......If someone did sneeze on Starry Night. The museum curators would just wipe it off. It is varnished!
2007-10-20 14:50:34 · answer #1 · answered by artistagent116 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Recently a woman kissed a famous white painting in a major gallery making a lipstick stain, she is being prosecuted for vandalism.
Some works which have become targets for vandalism like the Mona Lisa are protected by glass. There is a movement sensor which will set of an alarm if you get real near a painting, then a guard is on you so watch out.
Periodically people do vandalize artworks and sometime try to steal them. There are many great Art Heist movies, check them out.
2007-10-19 10:54:08 · answer #2 · answered by Alaska 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The really expensive works of art (I mean the really expensive important works of art) are covered by either UV glass or surrounded by some sort of barricade (usually a velvet rope... and surely it would take a criminal mastermind to get past the impenetrable velvet rope.)
However... It is possible for the average whacko to destroy anything he/she wants to...If someone wants something bad enough, there is always a way to get it! (or get at it in this case!). Maybe it's just assumed that if you want to destroy or steal something badly enough, you'll come back at night or just burn the place down!
By the way... Starry night was painted in an asylum in 1889 so it has had a lot more to worry about than just a sneeze in it's life time. (Fire, War, Theft, Weather, Animals, Body Fluids)
2007-10-19 10:37:30 · answer #3 · answered by Creepy Uncle Bob 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Are you still in New York? Try to get over to the Frick Collection at 71st & Fifth. They're open til 6 today and from 11-5 tomorrow.
You can practically get your nose right onto a Vermeer or Rembrandt or Turner. Don't do that, of course, but you can REALLY get a good close look at them.
It's my favorite museum in the city.
2007-10-20 07:00:49 · answer #4 · answered by helene 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well they would go to prison for many moons. The rich have a handle on the court systems. But I personally would never harm Vincent Van Gogh's paintings.
"For my part I know nothing with any certainty, but the sight of the stars makes me dream." Vincent
2007-10-19 10:29:23 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Just because you cannot see the security does not mean it isn't there. Next time touch one and see how long before you are on the ground.
2007-10-19 10:30:13 · answer #6 · answered by Little Chicken 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋