Fashionable brand Zadig & Voltaire has come under fire for a promotional video featuring a flaming fountain after social media users said it closely resembled the work of artist Julien Charrière.
The video was first posted on Z&V’s Instagram on January 19 to promote Paris Fashion Week’s Fall/Winter 2023 women’s show. illuminated. The fountain was featured in two more promotional videos posted to the account as of Friday.
Users immediately compared the video to the 2019 work Liquid fire flows underneath By Julien Charrière, a French-Swiss artist represented by Sean Kelly Gallery. Participating in the 57th Venice His Biennale in 2017, Charrière created a film His Color His loops of his two annular fountains consumed in flames in slow motion against a black background. This work has been exhibited in France, Switzerland, New York, etc. and has been featured in the latest Art His Basel His Miami Beach.
The sound of crackling fire can be heard in both Charrière’s artwork and the video posted by Zadig & Voltaire.
A still from Julien Charrière’s ‘And Beneath It All Flows Liquid Fire’, 2019.
Courtesy Sean Kelly
“I must clearly state that I have not been contacted by, or given permission to, this brand,” Charrière said in a statement on Instagram. A few days ago, people started contacting me and tagging me.”
“As of now, there is no solution regarding this issue. It seems that the company has started deleting all comments mentioning my name under posts and reels,” he continued, referring to the original artwork. His post now has over 2,000 likes and is shared by prominent art professionals such as artist Olafur Eliasson.
A representative of the Sean Kelly Gallery said: art news “Julien Charrière did not participate in or give permission for his work to be used in this way.”
Zadig & Voltaire has not responded. art newsrequest for comment.
The brand’s runway show took place Friday night at Poush, a trendy exhibition and studio space dedicated to emerging artists in the Aubervilliers suburb of Paris.