Greenpeace activists target North Sea oil platform with art protest
After securing a giant 12m x 8m canvas to one side of the structure, the activists hoisted a high-pressure hose to a height of 16 metres above the sea.
They then pumped 1,000 litres of blood-red liquid that gushed into the fabric, creating a vast crimson stain.
The blood-like solution, designed specifically for this artwork, is a mix of seawater, beetroot powder and non-toxic, food-based pond dye.
Greenpeace climbers install the artwork (Image: Andrew McConnell) The artwork is 'a stark visualisation of the wound inflicted on both humanity and the Earth by the fossil fuel industry, evocative of our collective grief and pain at what has been lost, but also a cry for reparation,' Greenpeace said.
It comes as the fourth heatwave of the summer has triggered health alerts in parts of the UK, while a worsening drought has hit farmers' crops and record-breaking wildfires have burnt an area twice the size of Glasgow.
Extreme heat is also breaking temperature records across Europe and fuelling massive wildfires in Spain, where thousands of people have been evacuated. Earlier this month, deadly flash floods hit communities in China to northern India.
Anish Kapoor said: 'The carbon dioxide released by burning fossil fuels is invisible, but we are witnessing the devastation that its extraction wreaks on our world.
'What still remains largely hidden is the responsibility oil giants like Shell bear for causing this destruction and profiting from worldwide suffering.
'I wanted to make something visual, physical, visceral to reflect the butchery they are inflicting on our planet: a visual scream that gives voice to the calamitous cost of the climate crisis, often on the most marginalised communities across the globe.'
He added: 'Butchered is an action that happens at the place where this violation starts – a gas platform in the middle of the sea.[ The artwork] attempts to bring home the horror, giving voice to the moral and physical destruction caused by ruthless profiteers.
'My work is also a tribute to the heroic work done in opposition to this destruction, and to the tireless activists who choose to disrupt, disagree and disobey.'
Anish Kapoor (Image: © Kristian Buus / Greenpeace) Greenpeace claimed Shell made £54 billion in profits in the two years after the invasion of Ukraine, but it paid just £1.2 billion in taxes in the UK over the same period - about 2% of its global earnings.
The carbon pollution unleashed by Shell over three decades is estimated to have already caused at least $1.42 trillion worth of climate damage around the world, the activists group said.
READ MORE: Forth Road Bridge shut by protestors with police on scene What happened on President Trump's previous Scotland visits? Unions and climate groups call for emergency funds for North Sea workers
Greenpeace also said that 'despite clear warnings from scientists and energy experts', the oil giant is still planning a major expansion of its operations, with 700 new oil and gas projects in the pipeline.
Philip Evans, Senior Campaigner at Greenpeace UK, said: 'Extreme weather is hitting close to home, but the extraction of fossil fuels driving the climate crisis is often out of sight.
'This artwork is a visual gut-punch that makes visible the suffering and damage caused by the oil and gas industry right at the place where the harm begins.
'While the fossil fuel sector makes billions from climate destruction, ordinary people are left to pick up the rising costs of flood damage, droughts and wildfires. Governments need to start holding oil giants like Shell to account and make them pay for the enormous damage they are causing.'
The canvas after it was completed (Image: Andrew McConnell) A Shell UK spokesperson said: 'Safety at sea is our priority. Greenpeace entered a restricted safety zone around the platform without permission, which is established under UK law to protect people and prevent collisions.
'Their actions were extremely dangerous, involved illegally trespassing and put their own and others' lives at risk.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
5 days ago
- The Independent
Climate activists spill 1,000 litres of fake blood over North Sea oil rig
Greenpeace activists scaled a Shell fossil fuel rig and unfurled a massive 96 square metre canvas across its side, drenching it in a crimson liquid on Wednesday, August 13. The protest was conceived in collaboration with British artist Anish Kapoor. 'I wanted to make something visual, physical, visceral to reflect the butchery they are inflicting on our planet: a visual scream that gives voice to the calamitous cost of the climate crisis,' Kapoor said. Greenpeace says it marks the first time an artwork has ever been installed on an active fossil fuel platform anywhere in the world. A Shell UK spokesperson said: 'Their actions were extremely dangerous, involved illegally trespassing, and put their own and others' lives at risk.'
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Daily Mail
Nobody is trapped inside Chicago's Bean sculpture, officials insist after protesters claim someone has been stuck in there for 21 years
Chicago officials have insisted that nobody is trapped inside the world-famous Bean sculpture, after protestors went viral for claiming that someone has been stuck inside for 21 years. Footage taken from Chicago's Millennium Park, home of The Bean, showed a group of mock protestors clamouring for the release of the 'man in the Bean.' The satirical troupe, all of whom were holding signs and wearing black clothes, were heard shouting: 'There is a man in there. There is a man in the Bean'. The group accused, without merit, artist Anish Kapoor, the creator of Cloud Gate, the Bean's actual name, of kidnapping a child and placing it inside the sculpture to live 'in complete isolation.' One protestor said: 'There is a man trapped inside the Bean. We're calling for his immediate release. In 2004 Anish Kapoor, the chief architect of the bean, stole a baby and put that baby inside the bean. 'We are calling for the immediate release of the man trapped inside the bean.' The stunt has gone so viral that Chicago officials were forced to deny the accusations, and begged people to stop inundating them with calls about the Bean. Alderman Brendan Reilly, who represents Chicago's 42nd ward that is home to the bean, told local media: 'I am happy to confirm that a man has not been trapped inside "Cloud Gate" (a.k.a "the Bean") for the past 21 years.' He said that while he appreciates a 'lighthearted parody as much as the next guy', the sheer number of calls his office has taken about the man in the Bean is preventing them from carrying out 'the real work we do for the 42nd Ward and City of Chicago.' Despite official protests, Chicagoans seem to be loving the stunt. Marisol Nuñez told Block Club Chicago after her video of the group went viral: 'It makes me happy [that] people find it funny and even add onto the joke.' Karen Jessica Dorado, who works in a nearby shop, told the outlet: 'This is actually so unique, and I'm so amazed on how their brains work to put this protest together.' So far, Anish Kapoor has not broken his silence over the stunt. The Daily Mail has contacted Kapoor for comment. Cloud Gate is a 100-tonne structure made from 168 highly-polished stainless steel plates that are formed in the shape of a bean. Kapoor was inspired by liquid mercury to create the 66ft long and 33ft high shape.
Glasgow Times
6 days ago
- Glasgow Times
Greenpeace installs Anish Kapoor artwork on Shell platform in North Sea
Kapoor conceived the piece, titled BUTCHERED, specifically for the protest on the Skiff platform, which is located 45 nautical miles off the Norfolk coast, the campaign group said. Seven climbers suspended a huge 12-metre by eight-metre canvas on one side of the structure on Wednesday. They then hoisted up a high-press hose before pumping 1,000 litres of blood-red liquid – made from seawater, beetroot powder and food-based pond dye – across the fabric to create a crimson stain. Greenpeace said the climbers were highly experienced and boarded the platform safely. Greenpeace activists sprayed red liquid on the canvas after installing it (Andrew McConnell/Greenpeace/PA) The work intends to visualise the wound inflicted on humanity and Earth by emissions from the fossil fuels industry. Greenpeace noted the action comes as heatwaves, wildfires and floods have hit Europe and elsewhere in the world this month, with scientists saying their frequency and intensity is driven by human-induced climate change. Shell is among the fossil fuel giants planning major expansions in its operations despite warnings from scientists and energy experts that no new extraction projects are needed if the world aims to limit dangerous global warming. Kapoor said: 'The carbon dioxide released by burning fossil fuels is invisible, but we are witnessing the devastation that its extraction wreaks on our world. 'What still remains largely hidden is the responsibility oil giants like Shell bear for causing this destruction and profiting from worldwide suffering. 'I wanted to make something visual, physical, visceral to reflect the butchery they are inflicting on our planet: a visual scream that gives voice to the calamitous cost of the climate crisis, often on the most marginalised communities across the globe.' Artist Anish Kapoor, left, with Greenpeace activists Benji and Poppy (Kristian Buus/Greenpeace/PA) Kapoor is the latest figure to join the 'polluters pay pact', a global Greenpeace initiative backed by politicians, firefighters, unions, humanitarian groups and tens of thousands of people. The artist, whose world-famous work includes the Cloud Gate sculpture, also known as the Bean, in Chicago, said his new piece aims to 'bring home the horror, giving voice to the moral and physical destruction caused by ruthless profiteers', and pay tribute to activists who chose to 'disrupt, disagree and disobey'. Philip Evans, senior campaigner at Greenpeace UK, said: 'Extreme weather is hitting close to home, but the extraction of fossil fuels driving the climate crisis is often out of sight. 'This artwork is a visual gut-punch that makes visible the suffering and damage caused by the oil and gas industry right at the place where the harm begins.' The campaign group called on the UK Government to place new polluter taxes on oil and gas companies, such as a levy on extraction and on shareholders in fossil fuel firms, to help raise funds for climate-impacted communities at home and abroad. Greenpeace said it is the world's first artwork to be installed at an active offshore gas site (Andrew McConnell/Greenpeace/PA) A Shell UK spokesperson said: 'Safety at sea is our priority. 'Greenpeace entered a restricted safety zone around the platform without permission, which is established under UK law to protect people and prevent collisions. 'Their actions were extremely dangerous, involved illegally trespassing, and put their own and others' lives at risk. 'We respect the right of individuals and organisations to protest, but it must be done safely and lawfully.' The Energy Department (Desnz) has been asked for comment.
