TV journalist grabs vandal at Goodman Gallery

A controversial painting of President Jacob Zuma in the Goodman Gallery in Johannesburg was defaced by two men, gallery staff confirmed on Tuesday.

"One man painted a red X across Zuma's face and the second covered the painting with black paint," a gallery spokesman said.

Both the face and waist of the painting were covered in black paint and no longer visible.

The painting, called "The Spear" by Brett Murray and bought by a German collector for about R136,000 was damaged on Tuesday around 11am.

The two men were being held by the gallery security team. The police were on their way there.

A television journalist working on a story about the controversial painting of President Jacob Zuma, tried to stop one of the men who defaced the work on Tuesday.

Iman Rappetti, eNews channel anchor, was in the Goodman Gallery in Rosebank, close to the "The Spear" when a man took out a pot of paint and marked an X in the genital area of the portrait.

She said she grabbed him, while shouting to gallery staff to come and help her. "It was surreal."

Rappetti described the vandal as a completely "ordinary" looking critic wearing a tweed jacket. Unbeknown to Rappetti another man was standing behind her with a large pot of black paint.

The second man started "going to town on the picture", she said.

"I was screaming."

Gallery staff apprehended both men and the police arrived shortly afterwards and took them away.

Rappetti said the gallery staff had told her the first man had identified himself as an Afrikaans journalist. He had visited the Goodman Gallery before.

"He did not sound Afrikaans to me," she said.

The second man appeared to be working with the first one. The gallery closed after the vandalism, and the public and reporters crowded outside.

Inside the gallery gate were three private and armed security guards wearing bulletproof vests -- with one guard carrying a rifle.