The Palazzo Maffei museum in the Italian city of Verona has called on people to “respect art” after a visitor was filmed on CCTV breaking a chair covered in shimmering Swarovski crystals.
The footage, which was captured back in April, shows a man taking a photo of a woman pretending to sit on the artwork by Italian artist Nicola Bolla, which is known as the “Van Gogh” chair, before the man sits on it himself. The chair folds under his weight, causing him to stagger backward against a wall. The couple then dash out of the room.
Palazzo Maffei only recently posted the CCTV footage on social media, calling the act an “irresponsible gesture.” Museum officials said the culprits fled before staff realized the chair was broken. The police have since been notified but the two suspects remain unidentified.
“Sometimes we lose our brains to take a picture, and we don’t think about the consequences,” Vanessa Carlon, the museum’s director, said in a statement. “Of course it was an accident, but these two people left without speaking to us—that isn’t an accident. This is a nightmare for any museum.”
Bolla made the chair using polished, machine-cut glass, which he decorated with crystals. It is a tribute to Vincent van Gogh’s 1888 painting of a simple chair, titled Van Gogh’s Chair. The museum reportedly declined to reveal the value of Bolla’s work.
“On the chair was a note warning people not to touch, and of course it is placed on a pedestal, so it’s quite clear it’s not a real chair,” Carlotta Menegazzo, an art historian who works at the Palazzo Maffei, told the BBC. She said the chair might have looked sturdy but it is hollow and held together with foil.
The artwork has since been restored and is back on view in the museum. It opened five years ago and its collection includes works by Pablo Picasso and ancient Egyptian objects.
Carlon added that she hopes the accident encourages people to view are “in a more respectful way.”
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“Art must be respected and loved because it is very fragile,” she said.