Four months in prison for sticking to the frame of a painting

2023-04-27 00:56:38

A court in Berlin has sentenced a young environmental activist to four months in prison this Wednesday for sticking to the frame of a painting by the German painter Lucas Cranach the Elder during a protest in August 2022 at the Gemaldegalerie in the German capital.

The 24-year-old belongs to the group of activists last generation (Last Generation), which led several similar protests throughout 2022, and has been convicted of property damage and attempted coercion, as well as resisting law enforcement.

Guilty of sticking to the picture frame

The court has found her guilty of sticking to the picture frame Rest on the flight to Egyptwhich dates back to 1504. This is the first time that a court in Berlin has imposed a prison sentence without the possibility of parole to a climate activist. The damages caused by the young woman amount to 2,385 eurosaccording to the sentence.

“It is unacceptable that a part of society does not respect the law when it comes to its objectives,” declared the president of the court, Susanne Wortmann, when issuing the sentence. The judge has ruled out the suspension of the sentence given that The young woman has shown “intransigence” and has stated that she would continue to participate in similar actions.

“We made sure that the painting was protected by glass”

“I do not participate lightly or thoughtlessly,” he has said, arguing that the protest at the Berlin art gallery was symbolic. “We made sure that the painting was protected by glass,” she said.

His lawyer has argued that the frame itself is not a work of art but was purchased in 1952 for about 60 marks and has appealed the court ruling.

In June 2022, the activist also joined three other activists in a exit ramp of a Berlin motorway. Then, he explained that she had been participating in group actions for more than a year.