The Uffizi gallery in Florence is suing French fashion house Jean Paul Gaultier after it allegedly used “unauthorised” reproductions of the artist Sandro Botticelli’s work.
The brand released an entire collection based around Botticelli’s opus, The Birth of Venus, which depicts the goddess of love and beauty covering her naked body, stood upon a scallop shell after being birthed from the sea.
Any unauthorised reproduction of Italian publicly owned art for commercial purposes is strictly illegal, as anyone wishing to earn from a reproduction has to make a formal request and pay a fee.
The Uffizi is alleging that Jean Paul Gaultier failed to do this, meaning the collection of botched Botticelli sweater vests, scarves and leggings is in violation of Italian law.
Speaking to The Guardian, Uffizi director Eike Schmidt said that the gallery had raised the issue with Jean Paul Gaultier after becoming aware of the collection, demanding it be removed or a fee be payed, but they were ignored.
“Fashion designers regularly use our images and most are familiar with Italian law, which says that any use of publicly owned art needs to be authorised and paid for,” Schmidt told The Guardian. “How much depends on the volume of sales, price the items are sold for etc.”
Given that the Jean Paul Gaultier infringement involves a whole collection, Schmidt estimates that the fine could be in excess of £100,000.
Online shopping listings reveal the cost of the unauthorised items: a tulle Birth of Venus dress for £665, Birth of Venus lounge pants for £325 and a Birth of Venus wraparound crop top for £305.
This isn’t to say that no reproductions of Italian publicly owned artwork are out there, the Uffizi even sells them in its gift shop - tote bags, fridge magnets and the like.
“Everything sold in the Uffizi shop is of course authorised and for every item sold we receive a certain percentage,” Schmidt says.
“We do sometimes see street sellers using the art on ‘do it yourself’ products, and the quality is never any good. Do you need to wear a T-shirt with Botticelli on it? Some people like to and it’s not about interfering with anyone’s creativity – Botticelli art is used regularly but generally companies ask permission.”
If a company doesn’t ask permission, the Uffizi can still track the copycat down using a special software it uses to monitor the internet for reproductions of the artwork, or thanks to the keen eye of social media users who flag it to the gallery’s accounts.
