Shepard Fairey's Obama "HOPE" poster was apparently inspired by a 2006 Associated Press photo by Mannie Garcia.
"The Associated Press has determined that the photograph used in the poster is an AP photo and that its use required permission,” AP spokesperson Paul Colford said in a written statement issued February 4. “AP safeguards its assets and looks at these events on a case-by-case basis. We have reached out to Mr. Fairey's attorney and are in discussions. We hope for an amicable solution."
Earlier this year, bloggers identified the source photograph as an AP photo shot by photographer Mannie Garcia in 2006. Garcia is no longer with the AP.
The AP published a story quoting Fairey's attorney saying the use of the image is "fair use," and thus protected by copyright law.
“We believe fair use protects Shepard's right to do what he did here,” Fairey's attorney, Anthony Falzone, told the AP. “It wouldn't be appropriate to comment beyond that at this time because we are in discussions about this with the AP.” Falzone is executive director of the Fair Use Project at Stanford University and a lecturer at the Stanford Law School.
Fairey’s poster is one of the most celebrated works of campaign art in American history, and was recently added to the collection of the National Portrait Gallery in Washington.
Fair use remains an unsettled area of copyright law. Recently photographer Patrick Cariou sued artist Richard Prince over an series of painted collages that made use of copyrighted photos. The case is pending.
In January, bloggers including Philadelphia Inquirer photographer Tom Gralish worked to identify the source photo for Fairey's photo. Some guessed it was a shot by Reuters photographer Jim Young. But others identified the AP shot by Garcia as a closer match, and software by Ideé appeared to confirm the match.
Correction: An earlier version of this story misspelled Mannie Garcia's first name.
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