Pair Who Covered Picasso with Photo of Palestinian Mother and Child Found Guilty of Criminal Damage
7July 30, 2026
The charge stems from anOctober 9, 2024, incidentin which Halai and Rosenfeld entered London’s National Gallery during open hours and coveredPablo Picasso’s 1901Motherhood(La Maternité) with an image of a Palestinian woman weeping as she held her bloodied child. The photo was taken by Palestinian journalist Ali Jadallah during the Israeli siege of Gaza’s al-Shifa Hospital in March 2024. The demonstrators, affiliated withYouth Demand, an offshoot of a student division of climate action organizationJust Stop Oil, then vocally called for England to end trade with Israel. They were arrested after one poured a red liquid on the floor, drawing gasps from visitors.
The pair carried out their action just days after two young climate change activists were sentenced to prison for bringing awareness to their cause by slinging soup over the glass protecting Vincent van Gogh’s 1888 Sunflowers. The jury heard that the Picasso was not damaged, but that the red liquid, which turned out to be water-based paint, had seeped into the gallery floor and stained the marble skirting. The incident cost the museum £8,000 ($10,600), though only about £270 ($360) went to cleaning, with the rest being spent on repairs, staff time, and the reopening of the gallery. The defense’s argument that a portion of the costs reflected not the damage caused by the protest but gallery officials’ decision on how to repair the floors did not sway the court.