A Dutch museum worker accidentally threw away what he thought were two empty beer cans, one of which was crushed.
But these were hand-painted objects by the French artist Alexandre Lavet, exhibited at the LAM museum in the town of Lisse.
The work was caught just in time, specifies the establishment, which understands that the technician in question “was just doing his job”.
He wants “surprise visitors every time”. The formula at the LAM museum in Liss, in the west of the Netherlands, worked at full capacity for one of its employees who, despite himself, almost caused a valuable work to disappear. He threw away two empty beer cans displayed in a glass elevator shaft, without knowing that they were in fact a work of art by Frenchman Alexandre Lavet.
Titled All the good times we spent togetherit is made up of two cans meticulously hand painted in acrylic. “A lot of time and effort went into creating them”indicates the museum. It was curator Elisah van den Bergh who noticed the cans were missing. She rushed to collect them from a trash bag just before it was thrown away. To avoid any recurrence, the work was placed on a more conventional base.
“Our art encourages visitors to see everyday objects in a new light”explains Sietske van Zanten, director of the museum, to AFP.
“By exhibiting works of art in unexpected places, we amplify this experience and keep visitors on their toes”she adds. The museum claims not to have “no hard feelings” against the employee who undoubtedly believed he was doing something for the planet. “He was just doing his job.”notes a spokesperson for the establishment, who is already considering to “a safer place” to exhibit his pieces.
