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Woman Falls Into Picasso At The Met
By
Jen Carlson
Published Jan 25, 2010
Modified Jan 25, 2010
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By
Jen Carlson
Published Jan 25, 2010
Modified Jan 25, 2010
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Forget those dreams about showing up to school without your clothes on, how about showing up to art class — on site at the Metropolitan Museum of Art — and falling into an original masterpiece by Pablo Picasso!
That's what one woman did in her adult education class on Friday afternoon. The NY Times reports that she lost her balance and fell into "The Actor," a rare Rose Period Picasso (circa 1905), leaving a six inch tear at the bottom right corner. The painting has hung there since 1952 and until now it has done so without incident.
The experts at the Met’s conservation studio says “the damage did not occur in the focal point of the composition and the curatorial and conservation staffs fully expect that the repair —which will take place in the coming weeks — will be unobtrusive.”
The woman's name will remain anonymous, but this reminds us of a story in The New Yorker from 2006, in which casino magnate Steve Wynn suffered a similar tumble into his own $48 million Picasso.
UPDATE: A Gawker tipster says, "There was a group of students touring the 20th century area and a special needs kid was sitting on the floor or leaning on the wall, went to get up, tripped and tore a six inch long hole in Picasso's 'Actors'."
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Jen Carlson
Jen Carlson is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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