British artist Stuart Semple recently lost a lawsuit in a French court to the estate of conceptual artist Yves Klein for the sale of “Easy Klein Incredibly Kleinish Blue” paint.
A French judge found Semple’s “Easy Klein” infringed on the Yves Klein trademark and was ordered by the court to pay €16,000 ($18,200) in damages and legal fees. Semple has two months to appeal.
According to Artnet News, which first reported the news, Semple did not know the lawsuit had been filed.
“It’s so weird, because if you read the court documents, they’re saying that they’ve tried since 2022 to contact me loads of times,” Semple told Artnet. “But the truth is they just haven’t. I’m not hard to get in touch with. Anyone can e-mail me. I answer my DMs.”
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The lawsuit was filed by Yves Amu Klein, the French artist’s son and operator of the Pia Gallery in Scottsdale, Arizona, and Blue Bay Limited. The latter company owns the international trademark for “Yves Klein”.
Semple released Easy Klein in 2021, and told Artnet it took him a decade to develop.
Last December, the Wall Street Journal profiled International Klein Blue (IKB) and interviewed Semple about “Easy Klein”. When asked about Semple’s paint, the Yves Klein Archive said in a statement to the WSJ that it wasn’t the chemical formula of Semple’s product that was so important, but the item’s association with Klein’s name, reputation and legacy.
In addition to IKB, Semple has also made products that have challenged the registered trademarks of Mattel’s signature pink color for Barbie, and Anish Kapoor’s exclusive rights to the “world’s blackest black ink” Vantablack.
Interested buyers of Easy Klein have a grace period of one month to make their purchases before Semple will be fined €400 ($455) for each offense by the French court.
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