No surprise here…according to Reuters, contemporary artist, Jeff Koons is being sued yet again over copyright infringement. Photographer Mitchel Gray has filed a lawsuit in Manhattan federal court after he learned that his photograph taken in 1989 of a woman painting on the beach alongside a man was used by Koons that same year for his artwork I Could Go For Something Gordon’s, from his series “Luxury & Degradation.” The suit alleges that both Gordon’s, a gin company, and Koons used the photograph without Gray’s permission. Gray has also filed a suit against Phillips Auction House in London for selling the artist’s proof in 2008 for $2.04 million.
NYPOST
Over the past several years, Koons has racked up quite a few lawsuits…
- Rogers v. Koons – Koons lost the case over his sculpture Strings of Puppies, after being found guilty of plagiarizing a photograph of a couple holding a group of puppies.
- United Features Syndicate v. Koons – Koons lost the case over his sculpture Odie, a character featured in Garfield.
- Davidovici v. Koons – French adman Franck Davidovici sued the artist for plagiarizing his sculpture Fait d’Hiver which looked just like a photo advertisement done for the clothing brand Naf-Naf.
- Bauret-Allard v. Koons – Wife of photographer Claude Bauret-Allard, filed a lawsuit against koons over his sculpture Naked for plagiarizing her late husband’s photo of a naked boy and girl.
- Blanch v. Koons – Lawsuit filed by photographer for copying part of her photograph used in an issue of Allure Magazine featuring a pair of shoes that looked very similar to Koons’ painting Niagara.