Mona Lisa Smeared With Cream Cake In Climate Protest And Social Media Smeared In Memes

On Sunday, a man disguised as an old woman in a wheelchair smeared a cream cake across the Mona Lisa’s glass case on Tuesday and purportedly shouted environmentalist slogans. The world’s most famous painting was unharmed, but footage of the incident and its commentary spread rapidly across social media platforms over the weekend.

Mona Lisa sitting there like pic.twitter.com/yVQ3kFc15y

— ✨💜BUFFY THE NUT BUSTER💜✨ (@_ohbiyk_) May 29, 2022

Another mediocre white celebrity (the Mona Lisa) is making headlines for doing nothing interesting

— Vinny Thomas (@vinn_ayy) May 30, 2022

The man who assaulted the Mona Lisa has been taken to a psychiatric unit, and the cake on the protective glass case of the painting itself was easily wiped off. Many photos and videos were captured of the incident, which took place in front of a crowd at the Louvre in Paris, France.

We got it!@MuseeLouvre#MonaLisa pic.twitter.com/GAj0zybIsT

— IKEA Bulgaria (@IKEABulgaria) May 30, 2022

There was much speculation over how the Mona Lisa, with her famously cryptic smile, felt about the incident. The meme below (in Spanish) imagines how the Mona Lisa, reacting like Gavin, must have watched the guy coming up to her with a cake. Some also wondered how the painter who created her must feel.

La Mona Lisa viendo como se acerca a ella un wey con un pastel pic.twitter.com/AgL9LIVOth

— The Queen 🪬 (@equissoypao_) May 29, 2022

not the mona lisa getting vandalized omfg i just know leonardo dicaprio rolling in his grave right now

— tony (@catrussy) May 30, 2022

A few humorously expressed jealousy over the Mona Lisa’s "creaming."

Mona Lisa ain’t talk to a nigga in so long and she still getting creamed on…WHAT AM I DOING WRONG??? https://t.co/UUz4qb0sMe

— Iyosias (@whitest_injera) May 30, 2022

Users online heavily criticized the culprit’s choice of venue for a climate protest, pointing out the absurdity of the entire situation.

SooooO. Man dressed as old woman and sitting in a wheel chair smears Mona Lisa in cream cake as a climate change protest.

What kind of twisted mind joins the dots between Mona Lisa, old woman, climate change and wheelchair?

The world is having a nervous breakdown!

— Nationalism for dummies🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 (@nationalismfor1) May 31, 2022

Some expressed sardonic support of the protestor’s aims.

I’m just glad the Mona Lisa is safe now so it can outlast the human race https://t.co/EvC2wwFhJR

— John Fugelsang (@JohnFugelsang) May 31, 2022

This creaming adds yet another chapter to the storied history of the Mona Lisa, which was famously stolen and returned in 1911, sheltered from the Nazis during the Second World War and visited by the TikTok-famous Da Vinki twins last week.

It was so awesome to see the Mona Lisa by Da Vinki! pic.twitter.com/2DzuauPa2j

— DA VINKI (@VorosTwins) May 26, 2022