Suit: Artist stole ‘Made in Heaven’ idea
A Jeff Koons masterpiece stole from an obscure artist’s sculpture for an Italian porn star politician, according to a new lawsuit filed Thursday.
Artist Michael Hayden says in the copyright infringement suit that in 1988 he sculpted a snake wrapped around a pedestal for Ilona Staller, a well-known adult film star and Italian parliamentarian known as “Cicciolina.”
A year later, Koons, then an up-and-coming star in the art world, visited Cicciolina, whose nickname translates to “little chubby one.” Koons took sexually explicit photographs of Cicciolina, who he would later marry, atop Hayden’s snake pedestal. Koons then used those images for his celebrated “Made In Heaven” series.
Hayden says in his Manhattan Federal Court suit that he was unaware Koons swiped his sculpture until he came across an Italian news article in 2019 about Cicciolina suing Sotheby’s auction house, which included a picture of “Made in Heaven.”
“He continued his life happily unaware of Mr. Koons’s actions
or the particulars of Mr. Koons’s oeuvre,” the suit reads. “It was only in April 2019 that Mr. Hayden discovered for the first time the massive infringement of his own intellectual property rights that had occurred decades earlier.”
Hayden seeks money damages in the suit, as well as public credit in all references to “Made In Heaven.”
Even as a New York Times critic panned “Made in Heaven” as a “pathetic gasp” of self-promotion by Koons, crowds flocked to Sonnabend Gallery in SoHo to see the exhibit, solidifying him as an art-world celebrity.
The works were then shown in museums and sold to collectors, helping catapult Koons into the art world elite. Hayden, meanwhile, remained blissfully unaware that his pedestal had been used for Koons’ art, the suit says.
A representative for Koons did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“Mr. Hayden was upset to discover that his artwork has been used by Jeff Koons and others for decades to enrich themselves without his knowledge or permission and without him receiving any credit. We believe this is a massive violation of Mr. Hayden’s rights as an artist,” attorney Jordan Fletcher said.