I’m sure we all remember this moment when an elderly lady restored a painting of Jesus Christ on the wall of a church and it became a meme.
My plans: 2020: pic.twitter.com/7CcUr6U8p3
— Polis ? (@PolisLoizou) May 18, 2020
Well, something similar happened not too long ago. On Friday (19th June), Europa Press reported that a copy of a baroque painting named “The Immaculate Conception of El Escorial” by Bartolomé Esteban Murillo was literally defaced.
An anonymous art collector in Valencia, Spain, paid about 1,200 euros (RM5,805) for his piece of art to be restored by a furniture restorer he had known for a long time. According to La Vanguardia, the art collector saw that his treasured art was getting dark so he sent it to be restored. When the piece of art came back, it was completely disfigured!
When confronted, the furniture restorer denied everything and said that he will make it better and took the painting again. This time, it returned even more unrecognisable!
The art collector then brought it to a professional (which he should have done in the first place), but the professional said that it was already too late and that the piece of art had lost all meaning and value.
In a statement, the Spanish Professional Association of Restorers and Conservators (Acre) has condemned the lack of legal protection and has likened this act to vandalism.
“This lack of regulation translates into an absence of protection of our heritage.”
The Immaculate Conception of El Escorial is a circa 1660-1665 oil painting of Virgin Mary. Thankfully, the original copy of the painting is safe in the Museo del Prado in Madrid.
This is certainly a heartbreaking moment for the owner of the art. What do you think of this? Let us know in the comments.
Also read: RM500k Art Installation Is a Banana Taped To The Wall, Eaten By Hungry Man
