Photo-Seeking Tourist Squashes ‘Van Gogh’ Chair in Italian Museum
Two tourists in Italy have been roundly criticized for sitting on a “Van Gogh” chair and badly damaging the artwork.
The two unnamed tourists were visiting the Palazzo Maffei in Verona and waited for staff to leave the room so they could pretend to sit on the chair while one took a photo of the other.
While the woman was able to hover over the chair without touching it, the man — who was holding a digital camera — actually sat on the artwork and severely damaged it.
The “Van Gogh” chair was made by artist Nicola Bella and is extremely fragile and covered in Swarovski crystals. The museum labeled the act an “irresponsible gesture.”
“They waited for the staff to leave the room for a striking photo and then off they went, indifferent to what happened,” says the Palazzo Maffei on social media.
Initially, the staff was unsure whether the delicate chair could be restored but luckily, curators were able to fix it.
“Fortunately, the piece is shining once again,” says a Palazzo Maffei representative. “We thank everyone involved and remind all visitors to treat art with care because art is meant to be admired and respected.”
Photo-seekers and selfie-hunters have previously been blamed for causing “untold damage” to priceless art in galleries across the world. Last year, specialist insurer Hiscox said that 50 percent of its art underwriting has been attributed to accidental damage — a large percentage of that was caused by people taking photos.
Italy appears to pay a greater price than most countries for this type of behavior. Earlier this year, a 47-year-old American man was brutally impaled on a spiked metal fence at the Colosseum in Rome while scaling the barrier in an attempt to get a photo.
And back in 2023, a German tourist found himself in hot water after climbing a 16th-century statue in Florence, Italy so he could pose for a photo. He was forced to pay a heavy fine after a chunk of marble was knocked off from the Fountain of Neptune. The repair bill was estimated to be $5,370 (€5,000).
Image credits: Palazzo Maffei
