SINGAPORE — A Singaporean photographer has achieved a significant legal victory in Europe after suing an artist based in Luxembourg for copying her work in an award-winning painting, according to local media reports.
The photographer, Zhang Jingna, 36, wrote on her social media pages last Friday (May 10) that her successful lawsuit “means a lot — not just for me but also for artists and photographers everywhere”.
“It’s a reminder that copyright protects individuals from those that try to profit off our work without consent,” she said, in identical posts on X and Instagram.
Ms Zhang, who is based in the United States, first photographed South Korean model Ji Hye Park for the cover story of Harper’s Bazaar Vietnam’s November 2017 issue.
Then in 2022, Luxembourg artist Jeff Dieschburg won a cash prize of 1,500 euros (S$2,200) in a local competition for his painting — which bore a striking resemblance to Ms Zhang’s photograph.
He also exhibited the painting at the Contemporary Art Biennale in Strassen, Luxembourg, where the work was listed for sale at 6,500 euros.
Ms Zhang took Mr Dieschburg to a district court in Luxembourg for plagiarising her work, but the judges ruled in his favour in December 2022.
The lawsuit was dismissed on the grounds that the model’s pose in Ms Zhang’s photo was “not unique” and did not fully meet the criteria of a copyrighted work of art.
However, according to the Luxembourg daily newspaper Tageblatt, Ms Zhang’s appeal against this ruling was successful in a ruling handed down last Wednesday.
The court ruled that Mr Dieschburg had used Ms Zhang’s photograph as a template for his work, titled “Turandot”, without citing the source, and thus violated copyright laws.
Tageblatt, published in German, one of Luxembourg’s official languages, said that Mr Dieschburg is no longer allowed to publicly display the painting in question.
If he does, he risks a fine of 1,000 euros per day up to a maximum of 100,000 euros.
Ms Zhang, who was listed in the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list in 2018 that recognised young people in various industries, took to social media last Friday to announce her successful appeal in the lawsuit against Mr Dieschburg.
“The Luxembourg court has ruled that Jeff Dieschburg infringed upon my copyright when he used my work without consent,” she wrote.
“Using a different medium was irrelevant. My work being ‘available online’ was irrelevant. Consent was necessary.”
Ms Zhang also wrote of the difficulties she faced throughout the legal battle, including how she had lost out on work due to how the situation “ate away at me”.
She added that her home address had been doxxed, and attached screenshots of several hateful messages she received online — one of which told her to “stop being a little chicken”.
“For two years I’ve been harassed for fighting this because of my gender, my race, my being a photographer,” Ms Zhang wrote.
“So this is for the young me who couldn’t fight for herself, (and) for everyone else who’s felt the same, that they couldn’t challenge what seemed terrifying, powerful, and unjust.”
In her posts, Ms Zhang made a point of thanking Luxembourg and its judicial system for “upholding copyright protection for an individual” in a time where the rise of artificial intelligence has caused much debate over artists’ rights.
“I hope that more of the world will look towards Luxembourg and remember that copyright is what allows individual(s) like myself to work as an artist,” she wrote.
“Because without knowing that I can own what I create and make a living off it — I could never have chosen this path for my life.”
TODAY has reached out to Ms Zhang for further comment.
