Luxury Label Zadig & Voltaire Accused Of Copying Artist For Fashion Week Video
High-fashion brands often turn up the ante for fashion weeks. Remember when Balenciaga presented its spring/summer 2023 show on a muddy runway in Paris?
French label Zadig & Voltaire is no different, leading the promotions for its women’s fall/winter 2023 show by featuring a stunning video of a flaming fountain across its social media platforms. Just one problem—users quickly spotted that it bore a resemblance to another artist’s work.
The company’s video, which was uploaded onto its Instagram page on January 19, showed a fountain with three rings, all engulfed by orange flames that seep into the background. As per ARTnews, the same fountain was used in two more promotional videos on the account.
Those familiar with French-Swiss artist Julian Charrière were quick to comment on the posts that the video looked a little too similar to his 2019 work, And Beneath It All Flows Liquid Fire, which featured a video of a two-ringed fountain consumed in a fire for the 57th Venice Biennale in 2017.
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According to the publication, the same work has been displayed at exhibits across France, Switzerland, New York, and most recently, at Art Basel Miami Beach. Not to mention, the same crackling of the fire found in Charrière’s video is audible in the one posted by Zadig & Voltaire.
Charrière, who is represented by Sean Kelly Gallery, took to Instagram to speak on the matter, confirming that he had never been contacted by the brand and did not give permission for his work to be used. In fact, he had only become aware of the video after being tagged on the posts.
“As of now there is no resolution on this matter and it seems that the company started deleting every comment mentioning my name under any of their posts and reels,” he wrote, together with the video of his original artwork.
Zadig & Voltaire has yet to comment on the matter or respond to any publications, though it went ahead with its runway show in the Paris suburb of Aubervilliers.
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[via ARTnews and Julian Charrière, cover image via Zaldig & Voltaire]
