ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greek police detained a member of parliament Monday after he allegedly attacked art works which are part of at an exhibition in the country’s National Gallery in Athens.
Nikolaos Papadopoulos, who is a member of the small ultra-religious Niki party, allegedly smashed glass cases and attacked works he considered blasphemous. The gallery has been closed.
The works were reportedly part of an exhibition of Greek artists titled “The Allure of the Bizarre” that included caricatures of religious icons and themes. The exhibition, which opened in January and is scheduled to run until September, accompanies a parallel display of 80 works by the late 18th century and early 19th century Spanish master Francisco Goya.
The National Gallery issued a statement saying its operation was being “temporarily suspended due to the attack on works of art.” It did not give any details of which works were attacked and what damage was caused.
Papadopoulos, whose right-wing Niki party holds 10 of parliament’s 300 seats, had previously said in parliament that the exhibition was blasphemous and against the Virgin Mary and Christ. Formed in 2019, Niki, or Victory, offers a mix of Orthodox Christian traditionalism and nationalism.
The Culture Ministry responded that it acts “with the aim of protecting the country’s cultural and artistic heritage in general” and that it “never engages in acts of censorship.”
The Associated Press
