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Federal judge refuses to dismiss the case against Richard Prince

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I assume most of us will have a hard time forgetting Richard Prince making a fortune from selling other people’s Instagram screenshots. Photographer Donald Graham decided to file a lawsuit when Prince ripped off his image without permission. Despite Prince’s attempts to get the court throw out the lawsuit – the case goes on.

Last week, a federal judge in New York officially refused to dismiss the charges against Prince. According to the New York Times, this case could set an example of how the fair-use rules relate to Instagram, and it was about time.

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Estate of Andy Warhol sues NY photographer over Prince image

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The circumstances of this situation remind me of the Obama “Hope” poster. Photographer makes a photograph, photograph gets appropriated, then remade as a stylised artwork. The Associated Press sued artist Shepard Fairey on the photographer’s behalf, and the matter was settled out of court. The story here starts off somewhat the same. In 1981, photographer Lynn Goldsmith made a photograph of the the artist still then known as Prince.

Three years later, Warhol then allegedly took this photograph and made a series of new pieces using the photograph as “inspiration”. The NY Daily News reports that Goldsmith believes more than simple inspiration was taken from her image, and that it infringes upon her creation. So, the estate of Andy Warhol have launched a preemptive strike against Goldsmith and filed suit against her. Their hope is to set a precedent preventing any future legal challenges she may make.

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Richard Prince Finally Sued for Ripping Off an Instagram Photo

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Back in May artist (and I use that term lightly in this case) Richard Prince enraged photographers worldwide when he took photos from Instagram, added a comment on the photos and sold them in a New York gallery for up to $100,000 a piece. All this was done without getting permission from the owners of the photos, without sharing the profits, and without even informing them that he had used their photo.

Many called for the owners of the ripped off photos to take legal action against Prince, and last week a federal suit was finally filed against him and the Gagosian Gallery that displayed his “art”.

Accusing both parties of copyright infringement, photographer Donald Graham filed the complaint for the use without permission of “Rastafarian Smoking a Joint” without permission.

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Photographer Sam Abell Talks about “Cheeky” Richard Prince After Prince Sold His Photo for Millions

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Before Richard Prince appropriated the photos of Instagram users, and long before the SuicideGirls re-appropriated their photos, the lazy “artist” became famous for stealing re-photographing Sam Abell’s iconic cowboy photos.

Prince took cigarette ads with Abell’s Marlboro Man images and photographed them in a way that basically “cropped” the text and logo out.

With Prince selling one of these photos for almost $1.3 million in 2005 and another for $3.4 million a few years later, he became a millionaire off of Abell’s work – who did not receive a single cent from either deal.

As you’d expect Abell certainly had an opinion on Prince’s actions, as well as the art establishment’s attitude towards stolen art, and he expressed it with admirable calmness.

Below is a video interview from 2008, after his re-photographed image was sold by Prince for a record-breaking $3.4 million:

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Richard Prince Gets a Taste of His Own Medicine; $90,000 Prints offered for $90

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Richard Prince has been in the headlines lately after being accused, once again, of stealing other peoples’ work and selling it as his own.

Prince’s latest controversial “art” is basically a series of screenshots of various Instagram photos, along with the uploader’s name and some of the comments. In order for the work to be considered his own, Prince added a comment to the original photo – and voila! The magic of appropriation in its most embarrassing moment.

The so-called ‘face’ of the story has been blue-haired Doe Deere, but while she has stated she will not “go after him”, another party involved in this disgraceful incident has decided to take action, and in the most appropriate way.

One of the ripped-off photos belongs to SuicideGirls, and its founder Missy announced yesterday that they’re fighting back by selling prints of Prince’s appropriated work for just 0.1% of his selling price.

I guess you could call it re-appropriation.

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How Richard Prince Sells Other People’s Instagram Photos for $100,000

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If you were to take a screen shot of someone’s Instagram account and try selling it, two things would happen. The first is that you’d be told you’re violating the copyright of the photographer whose photo you’re selling, and secondly you’d be laughed at. Extensively.

It turns out, though, that if you’re famous enough you can take such a screen shot and not only bypass copyright but also make a fortune doing so.

The secret: slap some text on it.

Richard Prince has been using this method and some of his “artwork” is said to have been sold for $100,000.

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