Brazilian Rioters Damaged A $1.5 Million Painting In Jan 6-Style Attack, Brazil’s Government Says

Topline

A painting by famed Brazilian artist Emiliano Di Cavalcanti valued at more than $1.5 million was damaged by supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro when they stormed Brazil’s capital on Sunday, drawing comparisons to the January 6 U.S. Capitol riots.

Employees look at a painting by the painter Emiliano Di Cavalcanti damaged by former President Jair … [+] Bolsonaro’s supporters on January 9, 2023 in Brasilia, Brazil.

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Key Facts

“As Mulatas” by Di Cavalcanti was found punctured in seven places after the rioters broke into the Presidential Palace, according to a statement from President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s office.

The painting is the most important work in the building, and according to the government is worth $1.5 million, though Jones Bergamin, the director of Brazilian auction house Bolsa de Arte, told Brazilian newspaper Folha de São Paulo he believes the painting is worth closer to $3.8 million.

Another painting, “Bandeira do Brasil” by Jorge Eduardo, features the country’s flag, and was ripped from the wall—where it served as a backdrop for presidential speeches—and was found floating on the water that flooded the first floor of the Presidential Palace after rioters set off fire hydrants, Lula’s office said.

Sculptures housed at the Presidential Palace that were damaged also include works by Brazilian artists Bruno Giorgi and Frans Krajcberg.

A historic table once used by former President Juscelino Kubitschek was also damaged after rioters used it as a barricade, the president’s office said.

Rogério Carvalho, the Presidential Palace’s director of curatorship, said most of the damaged pieces will be able to be repaired with the exception of a 17th-century grandfather clock that was gifted by Louis XIV of France to Brazil’s then-King, John VI of Portugal by Louis XIV of France.

The clock, which was created by famed clockmaker Balthazar Martinot, was “completely destroyed,” Lula’s office said (a smaller version of the clock is housed in the Palace of Versailles).

Detail of the damage found on a painting at Planalto Palace in Brasilia on January 9, 2023, a day … [+] after supporters of Brazil’s far-right ex-president Jair Bolsonaro invaded the Congress, presidential palace and Supreme Court. – Brazilian security forces locked down the area around Congress, the presidential palace and the Supreme Court Monday, a day after supporters of ex-president Jair Bolsonaro stormed the seat of power in riots that triggered an international outcry

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Crucial Quote

“The value of what was destroyed is incalculable because of the history it represents,” Carvalho said, adding that “the collection is a representation of all the presidents who represented the Brazilian people during this long period” that began with Kubitschek, who constructed Brasília as the nation’s capital.

Tangent

The storming of Brazil’s Congress, the Presidential Palace and the Supreme Court buildings by Bolsonaro supporters over his defeat in last year’s elections has drawn comparisons to January 6th, 2021, when former President Donald Trump’s supporters rioted on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. Shortly after the attack, the House of Representatives’ curator said it would cost $25,000 to restore the busts, statues and paintings damaged during the riots.

Key Background

By Monday morning, more than 400 people had been arrested in Brazil’s Federal District for allegedly taking part in the attack, according to CNN Brasil. Bolsonaro, who is currently in Florida and has refused to concede the election, condemned the violence but dismissed Lula’s claims that he is partly responsible.

A vandalized painting depicting a political figure lies on a room at the National Congress in … [+] Brasilia on January 9, 2023.