For nearly two decades, the fate of Camille Pissaro’s Rue St. Honoré, après midi, effet de pluie (Rue Saint-Honoré in the Afternoon. Effect of Rain) (1897) (the “Painting”)[1] has hung in the balance, as courts have considered a variety of questions raised by an action the heirs of an original owner brought for the
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Sometimes a Banana is Just a Banana: Morford v. Cattelan
By Kevin P. Ray
In 2019, Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan[1] exhibited a new conceptual work, Comedian,[2] at Art Basel Miami. Comedian, which was widely reported (and frequently ridiculed) in both the art press and the general press, is a banana taped to the wall with gray duct tape. For decades, Cattelan’s work has been known for its…
SCOTUS Warhol Decision Articulates Narrow Limitation to Transformative Fair Use
In a May 18, 2023, decision, the U.S. Supreme Court revisited the scope of artists’ “transformative” fair use under U.S. copyright law. In Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc., v. Goldsmith, et al.,[1] the Court held that the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. (the “Foundation”) infringed photographer Lynn Goldsmith’s…
Problems of Provenance: The Gilgamesh Dream Tablet
By Kevin P. Ray
Among all areas of collecting, acquiring antiquities is perhaps the most fraught. I have previously written more generally about the challenges of collecting antiquities (see general issues), looting), the Parthenon as a case study, and Parthenon part II). While there is considerable risk of fakes or forgeries, by far the greatest…
Implications for Art Dealers in Anti-Money Laundering Provisions of the National Defense Authorization Act of 2021
On Jan. 1, 2021, the U.S. Senate joined the House in voting to override President Trump’s veto of the National Defense Authorization Act of 2021 (NDAA), which includes several new anti-money laundering (AML) provisions that may be of keen interest to dealers and other participants in the art and antiquities markets. The legislation comes on…
Nazi-Looted Art: Cranach Paintings to Remain at Norton Simon Museum
By Kevin P. Ray
Lucas Cranach the Elder’s Adam[1] and Eve[2] have hung in the Norton Simon Museum at Pasadena for nearly 50 years. Since 2007, though, they have been the subject of a dispute between the museum and Marei von Saher. Von Saher is the daughter-in-law and surviving heir of Jacques Goudstikker, a Jewish art dealer…
Persepolis Collection: Iranian Artifacts Immune from Execution
By Kevin P. Ray
This version contains a revision
On February 21, 2018, the Supreme Court of the United States issued a decision,[1] affirming the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit’s 2016 decision[2] that held that a collection of ca. 30,000 ancient Persian artifacts[3] that have been on loan to the University of…
When Artists Disavow Their Work
By Kevin P. Ray
Kevin Ray authored an article for the Spring 2017 issue of Best Lawyers – Business Edition, which discusses artists who have disavowed their work. Click here to read the full article.
The Restitution, Repatriation, and Return of Cultural Objects: The Parthenon Debate (Part II)
By Kevin P. Ray
The Debate over the Parthenon Sculptures
Among disputes over removed cultural objects, perhaps few are better known than that concerning what were formerly known as the Elgin Marbles, which even the British Museum now prefers to call the Parthenon sculptures. It is important to note at the outset, however, that even though the Parthenon…
The Restitution, Repatriation, and Return of Cultural Objects: The Parthenon Debate (Part I)
By Kevin P. Ray
This article is the fourth in a five-part series discussing the restitution, repatriation, and return of cultural objects. Each part addresses a different category of return. The first article in the series addressed the restitution of stolen cultural objects. The second article (available here, here, and here) discussed developments in the restitution…