Latest news with #museumworkers
Daily Mail
13 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Fury in Italy as tourist tears a hole in 18th century painting while posing for a selfie at Florence's Uffizi Gallery
A careless tourist sparked fury in Italy after he damaged a priceless 18th century painting while trying to take a selfie. The unnamed culprit had been enjoying a visit to the Uffizi Gallery in Florence when his day out took a turn for the worse. The man decided to try and capture a picture of himself mimicking the pose of Ferdinando de' Medici, Grand Prince of Tuscany, in a portrait by Anton Domenico Gabbiani. But, the visitor's bright idea soon became an embarrassing blunder when he lost his balance. The man stumbled backward, falling against the portrait and leaving a hole at the level of the prince's right boot. Museum staff were quick to identify the man and reported him to the police for causing the damage. The painting was removed for repair, with experts concluding that the damage was relatively minor. The incident occurred on Saturday in the ground-floor rooms hosting the Florence and Europe: Arts of the 18th Century at the Uffizi exhibition, the first under the gallery's new director, Simone Verde. A trade union representing museum workers said the tourist had tripped on a low platform intended to keep visitors at an appropriate distance from the paintings. The unnamed culprit had been visiting the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy, at the weekend when his day out took a turn for the worse. The man decided to try and capture a picture of himself mimicking the pose of Ferdinando de' Medici, Grand Prince of Tuscany, in an 18th-century portrait by Anton Domenico Gabbiani But, the visitor's bright idea soon became an embarrassing blunder when he lost his balance while trying to strike the same pose as de' Medici It had previously raised concerns to the museum authorities after another visitor had tripped but without causing any damage. 'Visitors are looking at the paintings, not at the ground. Those platforms are unsuitable and too dark,' said Silvia Barlacchi, a staff representative. Verde said: 'The problem of visitors coming to museums to make memes or take selfies for social media is rampant: we will set very precise limits, preventing behaviour that is not compatible with the sense of our institutions and respect for cultural heritage. The tourist, who was immediately identified, will be prosecuted.' The incident isn't the only embarrassing accident to be caused by visitors behaving irresponsibly in Italian museums recently. Earlier this month, a tourist was caught on CCTV sitting on a crystal-studded 'Van Gogh' chair exhibit in an Italian art gallery - before it buckled under him. The chair, which is named after the famous Dutch painter, is housed in the Maffei Palace, Verona, and is covered with hundreds of Swarovski crystals. It was designed by Italian artist Nicola Bolla and is described by local media as being 'extremely fragile and delicate'. The incident occurred on Saturday in the ground-floor rooms hosting the Florence and Europe: Arts of the 18th Century at the Uffizi exhibition, the first under the gallery's new director, Simone Verde. Pictured: People waiting at the courtyard to visit Uffizi Galleries in Florence, Italy However, it appears that while admiring the art, a tourist spotted their opportunity for a photo with no security around - without regard for the chair's condition. In the shocking footage, a man and woman can be seen posing with the eye-catching chair in the otherwise empty room. As the man takes the woman's photo, she leans in front of the the chair in order to create the illusion in the photograph that she is sitting on it. But the man took this one step further and can be seen hovering above the exhibit, before placing himself down on it. The chair immediately bends back into the wall and is left in a crooked state as the pair scurry out of the room. In the aftermath of the incident, the museum's social media accounts released a statement describing the 'nightmare' situation. They said: 'Every museum's nightmare has become reality, even in Palazzo Maffei. 'Waiting for the surveillance officers to come out, some visitors took an "in effect" photo. 'The result? An irresponsible gesture caused serious damage to Nicola Bolla's "Van Gogh" chair, a very delicate work, covered entirely with hundreds of Swarovski crystals.' It was designed by Italian artist Nicola Bolla and is described by local media as being 'extremely fragile and delicate'. Pictured: The crystal-studded art is is left in a crooked state as the pair scurry out of the room The museum was in crisis for days as it was unsure whether they could repair it, given the severity of the damage. But thanks to 'restorers who did a fantastic job' and Italian law enforcement who assisted in their efforts, the museum has said 'the piece is shining once again'. They added: 'We are sharing this episode not only for the sake of reporting, but to start a real campaign to raise awareness about the value of art and the respect it deserves. 'A heartfelt thank you goes to the police, our security department and the restaurateurs, whose valuable work allowed the recovery of the work. 'And a special thank you to all of you who walk through the museum halls every day with care, attention and wonder. 'Because art is not just for seeing. It is to be loved. It is to be protected.' This incident is just one in a long line of tourists behaving badly while visiting the historic and beautiful destinations of Italy. Whether it's defacing and desecrating ancient relics, or causing a public nuisance, many have even faced fines for their antics and have faced the wrath of the Italian authorities.
Telegraph
13-06-2025
- General
- Telegraph
Museums put trigger warning on manual about trigger warnings
A group of museums have put a trigger warning on a new training manual about trigger warnings. The 'trigger toolkit' provides advice on how to prevent heritage sector workers becoming traumatised in training sessions. The manual suggests issuing content warnings to alert staff to any upsetting material, ranging from 'Islamphobia' to 'transphobia' and 'colonialism'. But the document has itself been given a trigger warning, cautioning readers about its own 'potentially triggering content'. The guidance was shared by Museum Development North, a heritage sector organisation that works in partnership with Arts Council England. The manual was produced to help staff in the heritage sector handle material relating to British history, and periods in which 'intolerant, discriminatory, and offensive attitudes and behaviours were significantly more prevalent than they are today '. The guidance warns that museum workers will inevitably have to discuss 'material which represents a break with the diverse social and cultural landscape of the present day '. It states that this may be emotionally triggering, and some workers may not be able to 'comfortably engage with the material at hand'. The manual urges museum bosses to clearly signpost any material that could be emotionally disturbing, and provides a list of topics that could be upsetting. These topics include 'classism', 'politics', 'policing', 'transmisogyny', and 'genomics' – the study of an organism's genetic structure. The guidance also advises museum workers to flag triggering content in all emails, discussions, presentations, and training materials. It adds that staff can recognise if material is triggering by the reaction to it, including people 'crying'. If a training session has been particularly triggering, psychological aftercare should be provided to any upset participants. The guidance states: 'Preventing triggers from happening is the most effective and inclusive way of demonstrating an active commitment to your training participants' mental health and psychological wellbeing.' Trigger warnings have become widespread across British universities and the publishing industry. In 2024, The Telegraph revealed that new editions of the James Bond novels and Agatha Christie mysteries had been given printed trigger warnings alerting readers to potentially outdated and racist attitudes in the books. Passages of these books were also rewritten ahead of release to remove words that could be deemed offensive. The Telegraph has previously revealed that Works by Virginia Woolf, Ernest Hemingway, EM Forster and PG Wodehouse have been given trigger warnings, cautioning readers about their more antiquated contents. In higher education, students have been alerted to the potentially upsetting nature of literary works from Beowulf to the novels of Thomas Hardy.
