A London choose sided with Icelandic fishing big Samherji in an mental property lawsuit in opposition to conceptual artist Odee Friðriksson (ODEE), whose work “We’re Sorry” (2023) known as consideration to the corporate’s alleged involvement in the transnational “Fishrot” scandal. In a summary judgment launched November 14, Judge Paul Richard Teverson argued that the artist’s use of Samherji’s emblem and web site in his work had been “instruments of fraud.”
In an announcement shared with Hyperallergic, Friðriksson wrote, “Art makes waves, and it has rocked the boat of my collaborators in art, Samherji.”
“Their continued efforts to amplify ‘We’re Sorry’ have ensnared them in the very critique they sought to silence, putting an even greater spotlight on their wrongdoings — not only in Namibia but also in their stance on freedom of expression and corporate responsibility,” the artist stated.
The corruption scandal first got here to gentle in 2019, when a former Samherji supervisor leaked paperwork suggesting the corporate had colluded with Namibian officers to safe a part of the nation’s fishing quota, a transfer that hit the native fishing business laborious. According to WikiLeaks, the fishing firm paid off Namibian officers and promised to construct infrastructure in the nation. Samherji has denied allegations of bribery.
In 2021, the corporate launched a “Statement and Apology From Samherji” denying that any felony offenses had been dedicated besides by the worker who made the allegations. Samherji has not but responded to Hyperallergic’s request for remark.
According to court docket paperwork, Friðriksson, an MFA student on the University of Bergen, linked the official internet tackle of Samherji in the United Kingdom to a replicated model with a homepage that learn “WE’RE SORRY” in May 2023. The pretend web site invited guests to click on on a “full press statement,” additionally written by Friðriksson and titled “Samherji Apologizes, Pledges Restitution and Cooperation with Authorities,” full with an unaltered firm emblem. The satirical launch lists a media contact for Samherji and apologizes for “corruption, bribery, and neocolonialism,” additionally committing to restitution and “justice” for actions that “undermined Namibia’s government.”
Samherji sued Friðriksson over his use of the model’s mental property, together with in the mock press launch and the UK area identify. Friðriksson argued in court docket that as an artist, his freedom of expression below the European Convention of Human Rights outweighed Samherji’s mental property rights and that his work was protected below parody and pastiche legal guidelines.
Judge Teverson rejected Friðriksson’s arguments, figuring out that the artist meant to deceive web site guests into believing the false web site was in reality genuine. Teverson wrote in his ruling that Friðriksson wouldn’t succeed in defending himself in a trial in opposition to claims of malice, fraud, and copyright infringement.
Friðriksson’s lawyer Andra Matei informed Hyperallergic {that a} listening to will happen on December 17 to debate “costs and other consequences,” and that Friðriksson plans to enchantment the choice.
“We are up against corporations with millions and millions of dollars and legal systems that have historically not paid attention to the crucial role that artists, such as ODEE, play in the strengthening of democracies,” Matei stated in an announcement to Hyperallergic. “While we are disappointed, this decision has only furthered our resolve to take this fight all the way to the very end.”
Friðriksson was additionally behind MOM Air, a parody airline launched in 2020 full with a reserving web site, flight maps, and media releases asserting absurd charges for lifejackets, bathroom paper, and “COVID flights” for contaminated sufferers. On his web site, Friðriksson wrote that the parody was meant to encourage the general public to problem model authenticity and the ethics of airways. The artist carried on with the operation for some weeks earlier than it was busted and claimed that logistical firms had reached out to supply plane leases and airport slots.
“All good stories need some drama, and with this ruling, we definitely got it,” Friðriksson informed Hyperallergic through e mail. “‘We’re Sorry’ is slowly evolving into a movement, with so many organizations, artists, and other related parties realizing the significance of what is at stake. We take freedom of expression for granted — until we criticize the wrong entities.”
