Barely on display, the exhibition was set on fire.
A work by the artist Salomé Fauc, presented on Saturday at the Musée de la Cohue in Vannes (Morbihan), was partly set on fire a few hours later, according to information from Télégramme, confirmed to Le Parisien.
“Alas, an arson attack partially destroyed one of the three installations,” the artist lamented on Instagram this Sunday. “This event deeply upsets me.
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The opening took place late Saturday morning, and the fire broke out early in the afternoon, shortly before 2:30 p.m.
The work, called “And like a blue earthenware”, is made up of different painted strips (fabrics) eight meters long, hung from the ceiling and falling just above the ground.
Among all those on display, only one was destroyed, explains the museum, “it burned completely without affecting the others”.
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A post shared by Salomé Fauc (@salomefauc)
A police investigation has been opened, Fabien Le Guernevé, first deputy mayor of Vannes and responsible for culture, told AFP.
But for him “there is no doubt that it is a voluntary act, we see it very clearly on the video surveillance” of which the police recovered the images.
The town hall of Vannes, as well as the artist whose work was damaged, will file a complaint, said the elected official.
“A gratuitous act of vandalism”
“It is an act of gratuitous vandalism, there was no political or committed demand, it has nothing to do with those who throw soup on the tables,” added the first deputy.
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The museum remains open for the moment, only the part hosting the Salomé Fauc exhibition remains closed to the public.
This is the time to assess the dangerousness of the places, but also to know what the artist wishes to do with his work, explains the Musée de la Cohue.
On her social networks, she warmly thanked the museum director Françoise Berretrot, the first deputy mayor for culture Fabien Le Guernevé, the museum team as a whole, the firefighters, the police as well as all the people who show their support for me.”
The town hall of Vannes has placed an order with the artist so that it can replace the destroyed strip and so that his work can once again be exhibited complete, underlined Fabien Le Guernevé.