This might be the worst nightmare for a parent or teacher bringing a group of kids to an art museum. Maybe it’s a nightmare for the kids too. Or possibly a secret fantasy.
Don’t touch the paintings, right? It’s like the fundamental rule at an art museum. That, and don’t use flash photography. So it probably doesn’t need to be said that you shouldn’t trip and fall into any pieces of artwork either. And whatever you do, do not use a painting to break your fall.
This 12-year-old kid in Taiwan apparently wasn’t paying attention when those rules were covered before a museum tour. OK, it was a honest accident. But oh, geez — this is not what you want to happen on a museum visit. Here is security footage of the incident, courtesy of Focus Taiwan:
As the footage shows, the kid stumbling was pretty clearly an accident. He appeared to be paying attention to the guided tour and didn’t see the stand in front of the painting, so when he walked into it, he lost his footing. And wouldn’t we all naturally stick our hand out to break our fall?
Perhaps amazingly, the organizers of the exhibit realize the kid’s mishap — which left a fist-sized hole in the painting — was accidental and won’t seek damages from his family. The museum curator will ask an insurance company (whether the coverage is for the museum or the painting wasn’t clear) to cover the costs of the restoration, which will take place in Taiwan before the painting is shipped back to Italy.
The painting, by the way, is titled “Flowers” and was composed by Paolo Porpora 350 years ago. Its worth is valued at $1.5 million U.S. dollars.
[Mashable]
