Anish Kapoor’s Dirty Corner sculpture in the gardens of France’s Palace of Versailles was defaced on Sunday for the second time since its unveiling, with vandals spray-painting anti-Semitic graffiti across the 200-ft.-long, 33-ft.-high artwork and the rocks surrounding it, Agence France-Presse reports.
“Shame on France for the act of a hate-filled minority!” said Kapoor. “This is a violent attack against the human spirit and culture.”
The sculpture was cleaned after being splattered with yellow paint following its installation in June on the palace grounds, which lie about 36 km outside of Paris. But this time its creator has decided to keep the derogatory slogans as a stark reminder of the pervasive nature of prejudice.
“I had already questioned the wisdom of cleaning it after the first vandalism,” AFP quoted the British-Indian artist as saying to French daily Le Figaro. “This time, I am convinced that nothing should be removed from these slurs, from these words which belong to anti-Semitism that we’d rather forget.”
The country’s Culture Minister Fleur Pellerin, after visiting the damaged sculpture, called the vandalism an “attack on the freedom of creation.” She issued a statement saying that “This is no more or less an act which reveals a fascist vision of art.”
Prime Minister Manuel Valls vowed that the culprits would face strict action from authorities.
[AFP]
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