Visitor collides with Picasso at Met in NY

NEW YORK - A notable painting by Picasso will undergo repairs after a visitor to the Metropolitan Museum of Art accidentally lost her balance and struck it.

The museum says the accident caused a vertical tear of about 15 centimeters in the lower right-hand corner of "The Actor," painted by the artist during the winter of 1904-1905.

The museum says the damage didn't affect the "focal point of the composition."

Curatorial and conservation staff assessed the painting's condition following Friday's accident when a visitor attending a class struck the artwork in one of the museum's galleries.

The nearly 1.2 by 1.8 meter canvas depicts an acrobat posed dramatically against an abstracted backdrop.

The museum has about 250 works by Picasso in its collection.

- AP