Greek authorities arrested and then released Nikos Papadopoulos, a far-right MP with the Niki (:Victory) party, after he vandalized artworks in Athens’s National Gallery.
Papadopoulos previously said in parliament that one of the Greek paintings was offensive to Orthodox Christianity, the predominant religion in Greece, asserting that it insulted the Virgin Mary and Christ.
The Culture Ministry responded that it acts “with the aim of protecting the country’s cultural and artistic heritage in general” and that it “never engages in acts of censorship”.
After the attack, Papadopoulos’s lawyer has alleged that the politician was “unlawfully detained and, to heap insult on injury, that “they will take legal action against the National Gallery”!
According to Papadopoulos: “I took down four icons, four blasphemous icons, and in two of those … the glass pane broke, nothing else”. He said works at the exhibition “insult the Virgin Mary, St George … the archangels that we in our homes were taught to worship and respect.”
Angelos Papadimitriou, a member of the Board of Directors of the National Gallery who was an eyewitness to what happened, spoke to ERT regarding the vandalism:
“These artworks did not simply come down, they were screwed to the wall and terrifying violence was used to make them come out and fall down and break. We are now suddenly presenting it as something very gentle and that we just unhung an artwork,” noted Mr. Papadimitriou.
“It was a terrible form of violence, things are not that simple. This was a very violent act by a violent person,” he added.
The Katsadiotis works appeared in “The Allure of the Bizarre,” an exhibition that focused on Goya’s “Caprichos” prints and the ways they had moved other artists after him to approach religion in subversive, sometimes satirical ways.
Katsadiotis maintained that he was entitled to approach religious subject matter in the way that he did. “It is worth considering how society (politics) uses religion as a tool to control and corral the masses with threats, fear and obscurantism; how religion often preemptively categorizes believers as either loyal followers or outlaws,” he told Ekathimerini. “Those who do not conform and obey are traditionally warned that they will be judged and condemned to eternal damnation—a clear form of intimidation”.
In a statement issued Monday evening, the National gallery’s board of directors said it “unreservedly condemn(s) every act of vandalism, violence and censorship which violate the constitutionally guaranteed freedom of expression”.
EMST, Athens’s most important contemporary art museum, said in a statement, “This sinister act is one more stark warning of the rising threat of anti-democratic forces all over the world. It is particularly telling that this incident occurred less than a month after the closure of Democracy, an exhibition marking fifty years since the fall of the Greek military dictatorship”.
Within Greece, the controversy remains ongoing. On Tuesday, Greece’s Orthodox Church condemned Katsadiotis’s work, with the Holy Synod saying in a statement that it “expressed its regret for the content of certain works”. The Holy Synod threatened “appropriate action” in response to the exhibition of these works though it did not provide specifics.
The Holy Synod’s press release does not make the slightest reference to the vandalism of the ‘Niki’ MP!
Meanwhile, Papadopoulos has faced consequences in Greek Parliament. Nikitas Kaklamanis, Speaker of Parliament, has said that Papadopoulos will be censured, a move that will see his salary cut in half for a month. (editor’s note: That cannot be characterized exactly as a punishment with a deterrent effect.)
Formed in 2019, Niki, (Greek for Victory), first entered parliament in 2023 elections, offering a mix of Orthodox Christian traditionalism and nationalism. It holds 10 of parliament’s 300 seats.
Sources:
ARTnews: Far-Right Greek Politician Detained After Vandalism of ‘Sacrilegious’ Artworks in Athens
The Associated Press: Greek lawmaker attacks paintings in Athens’ National Gallery, claiming they are offensive
Flash.gr: https://www.flash.gr/sarakis-gia-papadopoylo-o-enas-pinakas-epese-opos-ton-afine-ki-espase-paranomi-i-kratisi-toy-989059
https://www.flash.gr/ethniki-pinakothiki-vidomena-ston-toicho-ta-erga-itan-mia-foveri-morfi-vias-apo-enan-viaio-anthropo-989219
Cartoon by George Micalef Art :
