Case notes

Free parking

In 2018, car maker Mercedes posted six advertising shots on Instagram of its luxury SUV in front of Detroit street art. The mural artists threatened legal action for breach of copyright. Mercedes removed the posts, but then sued the artists, asking the courts to declare street murals exempt from copyright, under a law that allows photography of public buildings. In September 2019, the courts rejected the artists’ attempt to dismiss the lawsuit. The judge said the murals could be protected by copyright if reproduced without the context of the building – such as on T-shirts bearing just the artwork. However, when shown in a streetscape, they could be covered by the public building exception.

Street legal?

In 2018, American street artist REVOK discovered clothing giant H&M was running ads showing someone backflipping in front of one of his graffiti walls. When he demanded compensation, H&M asked the New York courts to declare that illegally created street art was not protected by copyright. The action prompted a movement to boycott H&M, and the company settled the case.

An artistic lifeline

Chinese artist Ai Weiwei sued car maker Volkswagen for breaching his intellectual property and moral rights in a 2017 ad campaign showing a VW in front of his refugee-themed art installation, which featured 3500 discarded lifejackets. Weiwei argued his reputation had been damaged by the implication he was connected to the campaign. The Danish courts found the campaign was ‘‘an improper exploitation of the artwork for marketing purposes’’ and awarded him 1.75 million Danish krone (NZ$401,000) as compensation.

Are you an artist?

Los Angeles street artist Tristan Eaton is suing a Canadian developer for US$1.5m for promoting its student hall with a banner overlaying his New York mural of Audrey Hepburn with the question, ‘‘Are you an artist?’’. The developer removed the banner, but is arguing that murals should be included in the copyright exemption that allows photography of architectural works, sculptures and works of artistic craftsmanship that are ‘‘permanently situated in a public place or building’’.