A founding member of Pussy Riot has shared news that her artwork Pussy Riot Sex Dolls has been attacked at OK Linz in Austria. The artwork – which placed used sex dolls, purchased on Facebook Marketplace and online sex forums, in a deconsecrated former chapel – was targeted on December 7, when vandals smashed the glass door to the chapel of the Holy Virgin. The act coincides with the eve of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, when the figure of the Virgin Mary is traditionally celebrated.

Pussy Riot Sex Dolls was part of the debut museum exhibit by Nadya Tolokonnikova, a founding member of the protest and performance art group. In a statement shared with Dazed, she calls the attack an “act of fundamentalist aggression... a rupture aimed at the ideals of enlightenment, secularism, and free expression,” adding that it was not an isolated event. Earlier this year, Esther Strauß’s sculpture Crowning, which depicts the Virgin Mary giving birth to Jesus, was beheaded at St. Mary’s Cathedral in Linz, where it was part of a broader show about gender equality.

“The pattern is clear,” says Tolokonnikova: “There is an intensifying backlash against art that dares to question traditional narratives surrounding the roles of women in faith and, beyond faith, in culture at large.”

Despite the damage to the exhibition space, the sex dolls in the Pussy Riot member’s show went untouched. “We are glad that [the] work was not seriously damaged,” says OK Linz curator Michaela Seiser. “It is important to us to return the work to its original location as quickly as possible in consultation with the artist. The message is clear: attempting to destroy the work will not result in it disappearing from the chapel.”

Following repairs to the door, the shattered glass will become part of the exhibition. The artist calls this a “haunting reminder of both the fragility and resilience of art, and the freedoms it symbolises”. Seiser agrees that it’s important to keep this reminder: “The fact that works of art trigger controversial discussions is entirely desirable, but when it turns into violence, it is highly problematic.”

Pussy Riot Sex Dolls is created by Tolokonnikova in collaboration with the Chinese drag queen Niohuru X, who previously contributed to Pussy Riot’s US-based billboard campaign, #Pussyverse. “I felt compassion for the dolls and wanted to give them a second life,” Tolokonnikova says. “I transformed the dolls into sculptures depicting Pussy Riot activists. I placed the dolls in the chapel of the Holy Virgin because I believe feminists are sacred, and I’m convinced that the Virgin Mary is a feminist too.”

“I thank the team in Linz for their unwavering commitment to preserving and protecting this work.”

The installation is part of Nadya Tolokonnikova’s RAGE at OK Linz, which runs until January 6, 2025.