A 36-year-old Denver woman, apparently drunk, leaned against an iconic Clyfford Still painting worth more than $30 million last week, punched it, slid down it and urinated on herself, according to a criminal case against Carmen Lucette Tisch.
"It doesn't appear she urinated on the painting or that the urine damaged it, so she's not being charged with that," said Lynn Kimbrough, a spokeswoman for the Denver District Attorney's Office, said Wednesday.
"You have to wonder where her friends were."
Tisch is being charged with criminal mischief in the incident that happened at the Clyfford Still Museum at 3:30 p.m. on Dec. 29.
Damage to the painting "1957-J-No. 2." is estimated at $10,000.
The painting, which is nearly 9 1/2 feet tall and 13 feet wide, is estimated between $30 million and $40 million by the museum.
Tisch allegedly committed the offense with her pants pulled down, according to the police report, and struck the painting repeatedly with her fist.
The officer stated that scratches and other damage to the painting were visible.
A museum spokeswoman declined to describe the damage to painting or answer questions about who would pay the cost for repairs, deferring to the police investigation and museum policy.
The museum released a statement:
"On December 29, 2011, an incident of criminal mischief took place at the Clyfford Still Museum. The police were summoned and the offender was arrested and is currently in police custody. Museum officials are cooperating with the authorities regarding the situation and are in the process of further assessing the incident."
Ivar Zeile, owner of Plus Gallery in Denver, said that if the painting's canvas wasn't pierced, it likely can be restored.
Whether the damage affects the painting's value, however, depends on several factors, including whether it remains a museum piece or goes on the market. Sometimes such damage becomes part of piece's history, he said.
"It does damage the piece, though, even people just knowing that happened," he said.
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