The Year in Pictures: From Global Protests to Museum Heists, Here Are the Images That Tell the Story of 2020

The news cycle never let up this year.

Outside the Brooklyn Museum during the Black Trans Lives Matter March in June 2020. Courtesy Brooklyn Museum Twitter.

For a year that is almost impossible to find the words to describe, there are an abundance of images that speak volumes. From Black Lives Matter protests to brazen museum heists, here are some of the most striking photographs of this topsy-turvy 2020.

Jeff Frost captured this shot of a couple photographing a California wildfire. Photo courtesy of the artist.

Jeff Frost captured this shot of a couple photographing a California wildfire. Photo courtesy of the artist.

A person photographs a mural created by British artist Banksy entitled "Aachoo!!" showing a woman wearing a headscarf sneezing and dropping their handbag and cane, in Bristol. (Photo by Geoff Caddick/AFP via Getty Images.)

A person photographs a mural created by Banksy entitled “Aachoo!!” in Bristol. Photo by Geoff Caddick/AFP via Getty Images.

Tania Bruguera speaks with other artists gathered outside the Ministry of Culture in Havana on November 27, 2020. Photo by Yamil Lage/AFP via Getty Images.

Tania Bruguera speaks with other artists gathered outside the Ministry of Culture in Havana on November 27, 2020. Photo by Yamil Lage/AFP via Getty Images.

Isamu Noguchi's Floor Frame (1962), is displayed at the White House in Washington, DC, on November 21, 2020. (Photo: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images)

Isamu Noguchi’s Floor Frame (1962), is displayed at the White House in Washington, DC, on November 21, 2020. Photo: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images.

Ivanka Trump presenting the number of New Yorkers and Americans who have died due to Covid-19. Photo by Timothy A. Clary/AFP via Getty Images.

Theatre de la Sinne. Photo: Sebastien Bozon/AFP/Getty Images.

A worker checks the body temperature of a visitor outside The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Photo by Noam Galai/Getty Images.

LeBron James waiting to check into a playoff game against the Portland Trail Blazers after NBA players voted to resume the season in the wake of their wildcat strike earlier the same week. Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images.

Protesters parade through the streets during a rally demanding the release of jailed activists in Minsk on October 4. Photo: Stringer/AFP via Getty Images.

Protesters parade through the streets during a rally demanding the release of jailed activists in Minsk on October 4. Photo: Stringer/AFP via Getty Images.

A Russian peacekeeper walks past along a yard of the 12th-13th century Dadivank Monastery, outside the town of Kalbajar on November 16, 2020, after the monastery was put under their protection as part of the peace agreement putting an end to the military conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh. Photo: Andrey Borodulin/AFP via Getty Images.

A Russian peacekeeper walks past along a yard of the 12th-13th century Dadivank Monastery, outside the town of Kalbajar on November 16, 2020, after the monastery was put under their protection as part of the peace agreement putting an end to the military conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh. Photo: Andrey Borodulin/AFP via Getty Images.

Experts conduct an X-Ray examination for a mummy inside a coffin on the site of the wooden coffin discovery in Giza province, Egypt, on Nov. 14, 2020. Photo: Xinhua/Ahmed Gomaa via Getty Images.

Experts conduct an X-Ray examination for a mummy inside a coffin on the site of the wooden coffin discovery in Giza province, Egypt, on Nov. 14, 2020. Photo: Xinhua/Ahmed Gomaa via Getty Images.

President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, stand with their spouses, Jill Biden and Douglas Emhoff, as they wave to supporters after addressing the nation from the Chase Center November 07, 2020 in Wilmington, Delaware. Photo by Andrew Harnik-Pool/Getty Images.

President-elect Joe Biden and vice president-elect Kamala Harris, stand with their spouses, Jill Biden and Douglas Emhoff, as they wave to supporters after addressing the nation from the Chase Center November 7, 2020 in Wilmington, Delaware. Photo by Andrew Harnik-Pool/Getty Images.

Mourners hugging in front of a restaurant the place of the terrorist attack in Vienna, Austria on November 4, 2020. Photo by JOE KLAMAR/AFP via Getty Images.

Mourners hugging in front of a restaurant that was the place of the terrorist attack in Vienna, Austria, on November 4, 2020. Photo by Joe Klamar/AFP via Getty Images.

An aerial view of people who gather and light up their smartphones or lanterns to form an inscription saying WYBÓR (choice in English) along with a lightning bolt. Photo: Omar Marques/Getty Images.

An aerial view of people who gather and light up their smartphones or lanterns to form an inscription saying WYBÓR (“choice” in English) along with a lightning bolt. Photo: Omar Marques/Getty Images.

Metropolitan Opera Orchestra musicians perform classical music for Upper West Side voters outside the David Rubenstein Atrium at Lincoln Center on Election Day, November 3, 2020 in New York. (Photo by BRYAN R. SMITH/AFP via Getty Images)

Metropolitan Opera Orchestra musicians perform classical music for Upper West Side voters outside the David Rubenstein Atrium at Lincoln Center on Election Day, November 3, 2020 in New York. Photo by Bryan R. Smith /AFP via Getty Images.

An photo taken in Spijkenisse, on November 2, 2020 shows a metro train that shot through a stop block at De Akkers metro station, without making any casualty. It was prevented from plummeting into water by a sculpture of a whale tail called, improbably, Saved by the Whale's Tail. Photo by Robin Utrecht/ANP/AFP/Netherlands OUT via Getty Images.

An photo taken in Spijkenisse, on November 2, 2020 shows a metro train that shot through a stop block at De Akkers metro station, without any casualties. It was prevented from plummeting into water by a sculpture of a whale tail called, improbably, Saved by the Whale’s Tail. Photo by Robin Utrecht/ANP/AFP/Netherlands OUT via Getty Images.

A policewoman walks through the crime scene of Dresden’s Green Vault on Monday, November 25, 2019. Photo: Sebastian Kahnert/dpa-Zentralbild/dpa via Getty Images.

US President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential candidate and former US Vice President Joe Biden are seen during the final presidential debate displayed on a screen of a smartphone. Photo: Pavlo Conchar/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images.

US President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential candidate and former US Vice President Joe Biden are seen during the final presidential debate displayed on a screen of a smartphone. Photo: Pavlo Conchar/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images.

Oliver Barker at Sotheby's London salesroom on October 28. Photo: Michael Bowles, Getty Images

Oliver Barker at Sotheby’s London salesroom on October 28. Photo: Michael Bowles, Getty Images.

The Louvre Museum. Photo: Chesnot/Getty Images.

The Louvre Museum. Photo: Chesnot/Getty Images.

Protesters demonstrate against police brutality in Lagos on October 19, 2020. Photo by Olukayode Jaiyeola/NurPhoto via Getty Images.

Protesters demonstrate against police brutality in Lagos on October 19, 2020. Photo by Olukayode Jaiyeola/NurPhoto via Getty Images.

A protester tries to stop riot police from dispersing the crowd during the a pro-democracy demonstration at Bangkok's Pathumwan Intersection. Photo by Yuttachai Kongprasert/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images.

A protester tries to stop riot police from dispersing the crowd during the a pro-democracy demonstration at Bangkok’s Pathumwan Intersection. Photo by Yuttachai Kongprasert/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images.

"Artemisia" at the National Gallery in London is the first-ever exhibition of the work of Artemisia Gentileschi. Photo by Judith Burrows/Getty Images.

“Artemisia” at the National Gallery in London is the first-ever exhibition of the work of Artemisia Gentileschi. Photo by Judith Burrows/Getty Images.

A statue in Manchester Art Gallery. Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images.

A statue in Manchester Art Gallery. Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images.

People outside the Metropolitan Museum of Art as the city continues Phase 4. (Photo by Noam Galai/Getty Images)

People outside the Metropolitan Museum of Art as the city entered Phase 4. Photo by Noam Galai/Getty Images.

Welcome back! (Photo by Taylor Hill/Getty Images)

Welcome back! Visitors enter the newly reopened Metropolitan Museum of Art. Photo by Taylor Hill/Getty Images.

A security guard stands at his post at the uncharacteristically empty Metropolitan Museum of Art. (Photo by KENA BETANCUR/AFP via Getty Images)

A security guard stands at his post at the uncharacteristically empty Metropolitan Museum of Art. Photo by KENA BETANCUR/AFP via Getty Images.

Migrants stand on the rescue ship funded by British street artist Banksy “Louise Michel” during a rescue operation by crew members of civil sea rescue ship Sea-Watch 4 off the coast of Malta, on August 29, 2020. Photo: Thomas Lohne/AFP via Getty Images.

Extinction Rebellion pour dye down the steps near the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square, London, during a protest in solidarity with indigenous communities in Brazil who are dying from Covid-19. Photo by Dominic Lipinski/PA Images via Getty Images.

Extinction Rebellion pour dye down the steps near the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square, London, during a protest in solidarity with indigenous communities in Brazil who are dying from Covid-19. Photo by Dominic Lipinski/PA Images via Getty Images.

Visitors wearing face masks take a selfie with the painting of "Mona Lisa" by Leonardo Da Vinci at the Louvre museum. (Photo by Chesnot/Getty Images)

Visitors wearing face masks take a selfie with the painting of “Mona Lisa” by Leonardo Da Vinci at the Louvre museum. Photo by Chesnot/Getty Images.

Banksy donated the proceeds of the sale at Sotheby’s of a painting triptych, Mediterranean Sea View 2017, offering commentary on the refugee crisis to a Bethleham hospital. Photo courtesy of Getty Images for Sotheby’s London.

Black Lives Matter, Philly Real Justice, and thousands of Philadelphians rallied on the steps of the Philadelphia Art Museum. Photo by Cory Clark/NurPhoto via Getty Images.

Black Lives Matter, Philly Real Justice, and thousands of Philadelphians rallied on the steps of the Philadelphia Art Museum. Photo by Cory Clark/NurPhoto via Getty Images.

Protesters attempt to pull down the statue of Andrew Jackson in Lafayette Square near the White House on June 22, 2020, in Washington, DC. Police stopped them using pepper spray. Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images.

Protesters attempt to pull down the statue of Andrew Jackson in Lafayette Square near the White House on June 22, 2020, in Washington, DC. Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images.

Thousands fill the streets in support of Black Trans Lives Matter and George Floyd in NYC. Photo by Michael Noble Jr./Getty Images.

Two people hold up flags, noting the names of Native American people who have been killed, on the spot where a statue of Christopher Columbus, which was toppled by protesters, stood on the grounds of the State Capitol on June 10, 2020 in St Paul, Minnesota. The protest was led by Mike Forcia, a member of the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, who called the statue a symbol of genocide. Protesters also called for justice for George Floyd. Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images.

People hold up flags noting the names of Native American people who have been killed, on the spot where a statue of Christopher Columbus, which was toppled by protesters, stood on the grounds of the State Capitol on June 10, 2020 in St Paul, Minnesota. Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images.

Protester speaks to a crowd from the pedestal that once hosted the statue of Edward Colston. Photo by Giulia Spadafora/NurPhoto via Getty Images.

A protester speaks to a crowd from the pedestal that once hosted the statue of Edward Colston. Photo by Giulia Spadafora/NurPhoto via Getty Images.

Protesters gather around the statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee on Monument Avenue on June 6, 2020 in Richmond, Virginia, amidst protests over the death of George Floyd in police custody. Photo by Vivien Killilea/Getty Images.

Protesters gather around the statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee on Monument Avenue on June 6, 2020 in Richmond, Virginia, amidst protests over the death of George Floyd in police custody. Photo by Vivien Killilea/Getty Images.

Painters work on a mural on 16th Street in Washington, DC, on June 5, 2020 before the renaming of the street Black Lives Matter Way. Photo by Toni Sandys, The Washington Post via Getty Images.

The statue of Colston is pushed into the river Avon. Photo by Giulia Spadafora/NurPhoto via Getty Images.

The statue of Colston is pushed into the river Avon. Photo by Giulia Spadafora/NurPhoto via Getty Images.

The mural and makeshift memorial outside Cup Foods where George Floyd died in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

The mural and makeshift memorial outside Cup Foods where George Floyd died in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images.

Inigo Philbrick's arrest on the front cover of the Vanuatu newspaper, The Daily Post

Inigo Philbrick’s arrest on the front cover of the Vanuatu newspaper, The Daily Post

Rashid Johnson with his painting Untitled for the “Show Me the Signs” auction. Photo courtesy of the African American Policy Forum.

Rashid Johnson with his painting Untitled for the “Show Me the Signs” auction. Photo courtesy of the African American Policy Forum.

 


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