Deirdra Funcheon, Axios; Art Basel banana artist prevails in copyright lawsuit
- "The Art Basel banana did not rip off a similar work, a federal judge in Miami ruled last Friday.
What's happening: Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan famously taped a banana to a wall at Art Basel Miami Beach in 2019, titled "Comedian," which sold for $120,000.
- He was sued by California artist Joe Morford, creator of a 2001 work, "Banana and Orange," but prevailed in a case alleging copyright infringement.
The bottom line: Cattelan claimed he'd never seen Morford's work and was expanding off his own idea from 2018, when he'd depicted a banana with red duct tape for a cover of New York Magazine.
- In granting Cattelan's motion for summary judgment, Judge Robert N. Scola Jr. pointed to differences between the artworks, including the background and the angle at which the bananas were placed."
