Woman destroys $200,000 worth of art for a selfie

As reported at DIY Photography, an instagram-friendly exhibition has fallen victim to a very instagrammable disaster - a visitor taking a selfie managed to knock over $200,000 worth of art.

A woman crouched down in front of one of the pedestals trying to take a selfie at a group exhibition by artist Simon Birch, at 14th Factory in Los Angeles. Bumping the first display caused a domino effect, with all the pedestals in the row quickly falling down.

The installation features crown-like objects made from a variety of materials. Some are made from metal, wood and nylon, so managed to largely escape unscathed, but others made of gold, silver and marble were not so lucky.

Gloria Yu, one of the artists featured in the exhibition, told Hyperallergic that “three sculptures were permanently damaged, and the others to varying degrees.” She shared the information that the approximate cost of the works damaged is $200,000.

But maybe it was just bound to happen. Carolina Miranda of the LA Times described the exhibition as “the perfect place for an Instagram," and there's no ropes protecting the art, nor anything stopping people handling the valuable artworks either. Bugger.