Aritzia wins dismissal of lawsuit over hot-pink sculptures
Vancouver-based retailer displayed the sculptures in major cities in the spring
A federal judge in the United States has dismissed a lawsuit against Aritzia that accused the retailer of copying an artist's work with hot pink, squiggle-shaped sculptures that appeared in stores in early 2023.
In his decision, Judge Jeffrey White said Richard X. Zawitz was trying to protect the style at the core of his art, known as Tangle sculptures, instead of a single fixed product protected under copyright law.
"Tangle claims copyright protection over an amorphous idea, effectively asking the Court to pin jelly to the wall," the Northern District of California judge wrote in his decision last fall.
"Style, no matter how creative, is an idea, and is not protectable by copyright."
The decision is a legal win for the Vancouver-based retailer, which displayed the sculptures in major cities from Toronto to New York and Los Angeles this spring. Videos of the sculptures, especially ones showing employees struggling to put them together, got more than eight million views on TikTok.
The art was made from interlocking, macaroni-shaped pieces that fit together to create the sculpture. In his original lawsuit filed in his home state of California, Zawitz claimed they were identical to his Tangle sculptures and the miniature toy versions, which are also made from interlocking, macaroni-shaped pieces that can be twisted and bent to customize the pose.
He claimed Aritzia's work used the hot pink, chrome finish as the "palm metallic pink" option sold in his online store. Zawitz's lawsuit said he's held copyright over his Tangle designs since the 1980s.
In court, he argued his copyright covered "all sculptures consisting of 18 interlocking 90-degree curved pieces, and that any variations in size, finish, or positioning are protected derivative works."
The judge disagreed, largely because Tangle pieces are so customizable.
"Tangle cannot claim ownership of every conceivable iteration of tubular sculptures made of interlocking 90-degree segments merely because its own such sculptures can be manipulated into any configuration," White wrote.
"Only works that are 'fixed' are subject to copyright protection."
In a statement earlier this year, Aritzia said an in-house team had designed its sculptures. The retailer asked the courts to dismiss Zawitz's claim on the grounds that he was trying to protect "an unprotectable idea" and, even if the sculptures were protected by copyright, the products would have needed to be "virtually identical" for the law to apply.
CBC News contacted Aritzia and Zawitz's legal team for additional comment on the case, but neither responded by deadline.
Zawitz has filed an appeal of the judge's decision.
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