The controversial artist Richard Prince has a new exhibit on display called “New Portraits”. The display contains dozens of portraits that Prince reprinted off none other than Instagram. His collection is now display in the Frieze art gallery and some of the photos have sold for $100,000 each.
The photos that are on display in the gallery only had minor changes made to them before going on display in the gallery. Prince left a comment at the bottom of each photo and then claimed it has his own work. Some of these photos have sold for $100,000. According to the Instagram users whose photos appear in the gallery Prince did not obtain permission to use their photos.
One user doedeere who was featured in the exhibit posted,
“Figured I might as well post this since everyone is texting me. Yes, my portrait is currently displayed at the Frieze Gallery in NYC. Yes, it’s just a screenshot (not a painting). No, I did not give my permission and yes, the controversial artist Richard Prince put it up anyway. It’s already sold ($90K I’ve been told) during the VIP preview. No, I’m not gonna go after him. And nope, I have no idea who ended up with it!”
This is not the first time however that Prince has been in hot water for his art. Since the 1970s Prince has been “rephotographing.” He’s gone to court several times and has won cases that claim he has taken others work. The court has ruled that his art falls under fair use, this also includes Instagram.
The lesson we can learn from this is, if you don’t want your photos being used for someone else’s benefit keep your social media private.
Source PIX 11
