A £20-million Pablo Picasso painting was removed from the walls of the Tate Modern to be examined after a visitor allegedly ripped the work on Saturday.
Specifically, the gallery was said to have apprehended the 20-year-old man immediately after the 1944 painting Bust of a Woman was attacked. As of yet, we don’t know the exact condition of the piece due to the London-based gallery not yet announcing their examination notes.
The work which depicts the Surrealist photographer Dora Maar was painted in Paris during the final months of the Nazi occupation. Maar is painted wearing a hat and green clothing, sitting on a black metal chair. The oil on canvas work features Maar’s nose and mouth famously oriented in opposite directions.
The attacker is currently in police custody after being denied bail. He appeared before a court this past Monday where he stated that he would fight the charge against him. A pre-trial hearing is slated for January 30. Stay tuned for details on the ongoing case.
