Toronto gallery show closes after local writers complain

This is the second time I know of that something like this has happened. The most recent other example was the 2007 Tattooed Walls show in NYC, where very similar stuff went on. In that case it cost the photographer his book as well.

In this case, the photographer was selling photos of writers' pieces for an outrageous sum: CAN$2800, but she did not acknowledge that the artists had rights to their work or indeed to any of the money. They were also not properly credited.

Understandably, the writers felt disrespected and ripped off. In fact they were, and further, this sounds like a clear-cut case of copyright violation, particularly if the photography was quite documentary in nature. Idiotically, the photographer took the attitude that she was doing the writers a favor. Just as stupidly, the gallery let this all happen.

What if writers had printed copies of her photos and sold those for thousands of dollars - to do her a favor of course - without bothering to mention her name? Right.

It's unfortunate when graffiti art shows (or books) go down in flames, but in cases like this, it's the only right thing to do. Some photographers assume they can do what they like with graffiti photos because they think the artists can't defend their work or that they are not going to notice. Others arrogantly assume that their photos are legitimate art and the paintings are not. Nothing could be further from the truth. Graffiti writers win copyright cases all the time. They also tend to play nice with non-predatory, respectful photographers and galleries.