Opinion: Internet posse on the heels of national parks ‘art’ vandal

What is the difference between art and vandalism? In the case of one hiking artist, it’s where she allegedly painted her images: On rock formations in national parks.

The National Park Service has confirmed five paintings – probably hard-to-remove acrylic – that have been done in Yosemite, Death Valley, Crater Lake, Zion and Canyonlands national parks. Rangers today were trying to verify other reported acts of vandalism in the Grand Canyon, Joshua Tree, Rocky Mountain, and Sequoia and Kings Canyon national parks.

These atrocious acts of criminal self-indulgence first came to light through postings on Instagram by someone calling herself Creepytings which included photos of the paintings, with a “Creepytings” signature. A couple of blogs catering to hikers picked up on it, linked the Creepytings Instagram account to someone named Casey Nockett, and launched an Internet firestorm that now includes a petition at the White House to have Nockett prosecuted. Nockett could not be reached for comment.

The Instagram page where the photos initially appeared has been disabled, but Modernhiker and Calpidder blogs had already copied the photos and some of Creepytings’ comments, including that she had used acrylic paint, then said, “I know, I’m a bad person.”

The National Park Service confirmed that it was investigating the paintings but declined to discuss whether it was trying to find Nockett. The service also pointed out that vandalism in national parks is a crime, though it has not said what charges might ultimately be involved should they prosecute someone.

It’s baffling that someone could be so oblivious to the damage he or she is causing to lands that we, as a society, have decided are so beautiful and have so much meaning that they should be preserved in all of our names.

As I said before, these are atrocious acts of criminal self-indulgence.

Unfortunately, this isn’t the first instance of high-profile vandalism in national parks. Last year a mentally ill woman splashed green paint on the Lincoln Memorial (and a few other national landmarks), and there were at least two incidents at the Saguaro National Park in Arizona.

But in this case, an Internet posse brought the damage to light. Crowd-sourced crime fighting: What a concept.

Follow Scott Martelle on Twitter @smartelle.