A fire in Naples has destroyed a large-scale artwork by one of Italy’s most influential living artists, the municipal government said Wednesday, with the mayor of the ancient city vowing that “vandalism will not stop art.”
The towering open-air installation of “Venus of the Rags” by Michelangelo Pistoletto was inaugurated two weeks ago and depicted the Roman goddess of love behind a mass of tattered cloths. It was on view in the city’s Piazza del Municipio.
The Naples municipality said in a statement on Facebook that the fire occurred at dawn and appeared to be “malicious” in nature, but investigators are still trying to determine the cause. Mayor Gaetano Manfredi told reporters the incident was an “act of great violence” and promised to launch a fundraiser to recreate the work. “When you attack art, you attack man,” he said.