Top 10 – Art Attacks
6. Monet’s Argenteuil Basin With A Single Sailboat Punched
While visiting the National Gallery of Ireland in 2012, 49-year-old Andrew Shannon attacked and punched a hole through a painting worth nearly £8 million. The unfortunate work was Monet’s ‘Argenteuil Basin with a Single Sailboat’ – the painting suffered Shannon ramming his fist through the canvas – destroying the masterpiece to the horror of onlooking art-lovers. Upon Shannon’s act of destruction – the art thug allegedly shouted at some tourists also visiting the gallery, before being restrained by a security guard. After Shannon’s arrest, the vandal told authorities his attack was an attempt to “get back at the state.” Yet at his trial, however, Shannon seemed to forget his angry attack against the state that destroyed the masterpiece. Shannon instead claimed that the incident was a mere accident, explaining that he had “felt faint” a story that the jury, unsurprisingly, didn’t believe. A court finally sentenced the vandal to five years in prison. After Shannon is finally released, he won’t be allowed inside an art gallery for a further 15 months – in case he feels faint at the beauty of the art he’s beholding and falls into it – while just happening to exclaim his dislike of prison food.