Peter Dazeley / Getty
A 91-year old German woman is under investigation after she filled in the blank squares on a piece of art worth over $100K that resembled a crossword.
The puzzle was in fact Reading-Wiork-Piece by Danish artist Arthur Koepcke. Created in 1977 the avant-garde work looks like an incomplete crossword. Whipping out her biro, the woman began filling in the squares before being stopped by security.
Next to the work was a sign reading ‘Insert words.’, which she took as an invitation to fill in the blanks. Later she told police that the museum should have made it clear it was not an interactive work.
According to Eva Krause, Director of the Nuremberg Neues Museum where the incident occurred, the damage is easily repaired. “We do realise that the old lady didn’t mean any harm,” Ms Krause told UK paper The Telegraph, explaining that their insurance required them to make a police report.
The museum has paid for the restoration of the work which will cost a few hundred euro and will change their signs to prevent keen puzzles from having a go in the future!
Related stories
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
