Protester arrested after paint splashed on Tom Thomson piece in National Gallery

OTTAWA — An artwork by renowned Canadian artist Tom Thomson at the National Gallery in Ottawa was splattered with paint today as part of a protest against the federal government’s response to wildfires.

Ottawa police say they arrested Kaleb Suedfeld and charged him with criminal mischief, adding they are still investigating.

On2Ottawa, a Canadian climate change advocacy group, issued a news release shortly before the arrest to say that paint would be thrown at Thomson’s “Northern River,” created in 1914-15.

An Instagram post by the group shows a man smearing the glass that protects the painting with pink paint.