A 36-year-old man in Paris is facing charges for using a piece of cake to vandalize the MONA LISA on Sunday.
He was disguised as an old woman in a wheelchair, apparently. It sounds like he did that to gain access to a handicapped area right next to the painting.
He either threw the cake, smeared it, or both. Then security removed him from the building. Officials at the Louvre confirmed the attack did involve a pastry.
It ended up being a weird climate change protest. While they were walking the guy out, he yelled, “Artists tell you [to] think of the Earth. That’s why I did this.”
The Mona Lisa itself wasn’t damaged. It’s been behind bulletproof glass ever since someone threw a rock at it in 1956, and someone else tried to douse it with acid. A woman also threw a mug at it in 2009.
The pastry guy tried to smash the glass before smearing the cake, but couldn’t break it, obviously. He’s being investigated for damaging a cultural artifact.
