30,000 people have signed a petition accusing the Italian artist of blasphemy.
Italian artist Andrea Saltini was injured in a stampede on Thursday when a protester tried to damage his painting, which was accused of being obscene. The incident happened at an exhibition in northern Italy, reports news agency AFP.
Saltini's exhibition “Gratia plena” (“Full of grace”) opened at the beginning of March in the church of Ignatius Loyola in the town of Carpi, which also houses the diocesan museum.
The exhibition has sparked protests, with 30,000 people signing a petition accusing the artist of blasphemy. The collector of the petition is the anti-abortion group Pro Vita.
Local according to the police, a masked man arrived at the exhibition on Thursday morning with the intention of damaging the paintings. The man had black spray paint and a knife with him.
Saltini prevented the man from cutting one of the paintings and, according to AFP, was slightly injured. He later checked himself into the hospital.
The perpetrator managed to escape from the scene. The police believe that the perpetrator did not intend to harm Saltini and did not necessarily know that it was the artist himself.
Salvin's the works combine the imagery of Christianity with a more modern expression. The subjects of the works include the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary and the Crucifixion of St. Peter.
A painting in which a naked Jesus appears to be receiving oral sex from a figure bent over him has caused particular indignation.
Carp the diocese has expressed its support for Saltini and condemned the violence.
The diocese has denied the accusations of blasphemy and called Saltini's work rare, for example, “real contemporary art with a religious theme”.
The authors of the petition accusing Saltini of blasphemy have also condemned the violence as “crazy and unfounded”.
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