An arson attack on Monday destroyed one of the centerpiece installations at the Milan Triennale of Art: a sculpture of a whale made using cartapesta—a traditional Italian technique involving layers of paper and adhesive—created by artist Jacopo Allegrucci. The piece, titled The Fragility of the Future, was completely consumed by flames, leaving only the iron frame that supported it.
The fire was intentionally set during the opening of the event. Shortly afterward, local police arrested the suspected arsonist: a 33-year-old Egyptian man with no fixed address, who was found near the scene of the incident, according to Italian media reports.
The sculpture was part of a series reflecting on material decay and symbolically addressing the environmental and social fractures that threaten the planet’s balance. “They represent a powerful symbol of the environmental and social fractures endangering Earth’s equilibrium,” states the official Triennale website.
The act was strongly condemned by Italy’s Minister of Culture, Alessandro Giuli, who described it as “vile and senseless,” adding that it “strikes not only a work of extraordinary symbolic force but also the culture, creative freedom, and civic conscience of the country.”
“This act of violence and incivility wounds a project that, through art, denounced the fragility of the future and the urgent need to protect endangered species. I express my full solidarity with the artist, the Milan Triennale, and everyone who worked to bring this valuable cultural experience to life,” Giuli concluded.