A British-Liberian artist who believes that her artwork has been used without permission in a prominent music video has accused American rapper Kendrick Lamar of infringing her copyright.
Lina Iris Viktor, who was born and grew up in London, has said that Lamar’s latest video for his song All the Stars, contains visuals which are eerily similar to her Constellation series of paintings.
She claims that All the Stars, which has been released as a musical accompaniment to the mega-budget Hollywood film Black Panther, has infringed her copyright by using her work without permission.
“Why would they do this? It’s an ethical issue, because what the whole film purports is that it’s about black empowerment, African excellence — that’s the whole concept of the story. And at the same time they’re stealing from African artists,” she said.
Ms Viktor has indicated that previously, she had been contacted by the creators of the Marvel superhero movie twice in relation to her Constellation paintings.
Producers approached her asking for permission to feature her work in the film – but she rejected their requests on both occasions, she told an interview with the New York Times.
Her complaints relate to a 19-second segment of Lamar’s music video, which she believes “incorporate not just the immediately-identifiable and unique look of her work, but also many of the specific copyrightable elements in the Constellations series of paintings.”
In a letter to Anthony Tiffith, acting head of Lamar’s record label, Top Dawg Entertainment, Ms Viktor is requesting a licence fee payment coupled with a public apology from Lamar.
At this stage, neither Lamar, Mr Tiffith nor Disney – the company distributing Black Panther – have issued a comment.