A Russian-born artist living in France, Andrei Molodkin, appeared on a television program to discuss a provocative project centered on a vault of stolen and celebrated artworks. He described assembling a large, secure container that houses paintings by eminent figures and installing a mechanism designed to destroy them with acid if WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange remains detained. The total contents are described as 16 artworks valued at more than $45 million, stored inside a roughly 29-ton safe.
The mechanism inside the safe reportedly includes not only the artworks but also a pneumatic pump that binds metal barrels together with an acid powder and a catalyst capable of triggering a chemical reaction intended to ruin the collection. Molodkin suggested that this setup represents a bold statement about the fragility of cultural heritage when political conditions threaten freedom of expression.
He argued that in the modern era, the destruction of art carries a stigma far greater than that of human life and used Assange’s ongoing imprisonment as an illustration of how information and expression can be stifled under state power.
Sky News reported that the works safeguarded in the vault include pieces attributed to Pablo Picasso, Rembrandt, Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg, and works by Molodkin himself. The plan is to seal the safe on a forthcoming Friday and relocate it to the artist’s studio in southern France, with the intention of eventually moving the collection to a museum.
The initiative was described as featuring a countdown timer that activates the irreversible destruction mechanism. The countdown would require a daily reboot to prevent an accidental, catastrophic outcome. The artist indicated that the timer would be reactivated by someone close to Assange until the case is resolved in favor of his release.
Should Assange be freed, the paintings would be returned to their rightful owners. One gallery owner from the Giampaolo Abbondio gallery confirmed that a Picasso work had been transferred into Molodkin’s vault as part of the project.
Meanwhile, legal developments unfolded in Britain as Julian Assange filed objections to extradition to the United States. Gareth Peirce, a senior partner at Birnberg Peirce & Partners who represents Assange, disclosed that two appeals had been lodged with the UK Supreme Court on a Thursday to challenge the extradition order. The court is now tasked with deciding whether to hear the objections.
In related political commentary, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador stated that if Assange were extradited to the United States and convicted, a campaign would be undertaken to dismantle the Statue of Liberty in New York. The remark underscored the highly charged nature of the ongoing extradition discourse and the broader debate over symbolism and freedom of expression.
In separate judicial proceedings, former CIA programmer and WikiLeaks whistleblower Joshua Schulte was sentenced to 40 years in federal prison in the United States on multiple charges, including espionage, possession of child pornography, and contempt of court. This sentence added to the range of high-profile cases connected to national security and information leaks. The case has continued to fuel discussions about the balance between transparency, security, and legal accountability.
Previous public statements by government spokespersons also linked the two prominent cases, with remarks that drew comparisons between the treatment of journalists, whistleblowers, and other figures connected to sensitive information. The conversations around Assange and related figures remain deeply polarizing, reflecting broader tensions over media independence, government secrecy, and international law.