Artist sues Maurizio Cattelan for plagiarizing his work using bananas

Almost three years ago, Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan started one of the art world’s biggest viral hits when he sold a banana taped to the wall for $120,000 at Art Basel Miami.

But Joe Morford, an artist from Glendale, California, is claiming that the world-renowned artist copied his 2000 artwork titled “Banana & Orange.” Now, a federal judge for the Southern District of Florida has ruled that Morford can move forward with a case against Cattelan, stating that Morford “sufficiently claims that there is similarity in the (few) protected elements” of his artwork.

If it makes it to court, the banana showdown will take place in Miami, where Judge Robert N. Scola Jr. denied Cattelan’s motion to close the case last Wednesday.

“Fortunately for the Court, the question of whether a banana taped to the wall can be art is more of a metaphysical question,” Scola wrote in his ruling. “But the legal question before the Court may be difficult — did Morford sufficiently claim that Cattelan’s banana infringes on his banana?”

Morford is seeking damages of more than $390,000 — the total value of Cattelan’s sales for three editions of the artwork — as well as court costs and travel expenses.

Cattelan came to international attention when he sold three nearly identical versions of his banana artwork at the 2019 art fair, with the final piece worth $150,000.

Titled “Comedian”, the artwork became instantly recognizable upon being remembered on the internet and made headlines again after a performance artist ripped the fruit off the wall and ate it.

This did not stop sales, however, as Cattelan was not selling the original banana, but a certificate of authenticity and instructions for installing the piece, including the exact angle and height to attach the fruit. Since then, “Comedian” has entered the collection of the Guggenheim in New York, thanks to an anonymous donor.

Emmanuel Perrotin, founder of the Paris-based art gallery Perrotin, which represents Cattelan, told CNN after the premiere of the work that bananas are “a symbol of global trade, a double meaning, as well as a classic device for humor”. He added that Cattelan turns mundane objects into “vehicles of pleasure and criticism.”

But Morford claims that “Comedian” plagiarizes his artwork, “Banana & Orange,” made nearly two decades earlier. “Banana & Orange” features the titular fruits affixed with duct tape to green backgrounds painted on a wall.

“I did this in 2000. But a guy steals my trash and sells it for over 120K in 2019,” Morford wrote in a public Facebook post in 2019 with an image of the artwork. “Obvious plagiarism?”

According to court documents, Morford, who is representing himself, registered the artwork with the US Copyright Office and posted the work on his website, Facebook and YouTube accounts long before Cattelan created “Comedian.”

Cattelan’s lawyers argued that Morford “does not have a valid copyright” on the elements of the artwork — the banana and duct tape taped to the wall — but the court ruled that Morford “can claim copyright in the expression of this idea” through the “selection, coordination and (and) arrangement” of the elements.

“While using silver masking tape to attach a banana to the wall may not embrace the highest degree of creativity, its absurd and ridiculous nature meets the ‘minimum degree of creativity’ necessary to qualify as original,” writes Scola.

While allowing the Morford case to proceed, Scola’s decision did not weigh on its merits at trial. If Morford cannot establish that Cattelan had access to “Banana & Orange” in court, he will have to demonstrate that the works are “surprisingly similar,” according to court documents. Cattelan argued that the earlier piece “‘is not original enough’ to warrant protection.”

Lawyers for Cattelan and Morford did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the CNN .