Cover image via Rob KeeverHow much is your Instagram photo worth? This one, posted by Instagram celebrity Doe Deere, supposedly fetched $90,000 (RM327,528) at a recent art show in New York.
Deere is also the CEO of Lime Crime Inc., a make-up company.
But here's the kicker – the above artwork was created without the permission of whoever owns the original Instagram account, nor were they notified about it. In fact, that applies to every piece presented at the exhibit.
Image via The Gagosian
Artist and photographer Richard Prince's recent works – titled 'New Portraits' – features a series of portraits that are actually blown-up screenshots of images other people have uploaded onto Instagram, which are then printed on canvas
Among the people featured in the series include models and celebrities such as Kate Moss, Sky Ferreira, and Pamela Anderson, as well as a racy selection of scantily-clad women.
If you're wondering if this is an act of copyright infringement, here's where it gets a little iffy.
While Prince leaves the images and usernames untouched, the original captions are removed and replaced with Prince's own captions under the username 'richardprince4'. According to US copyright laws, the minor changes could qualify and meet the requirements of fair use.
Image via The Gagosian
Even if taken to court, it is unlikely that the original Instagram users will win the case due to the fair use doctrine, as it protects certain kinds of copying when it is deemed "beneficial" to the society and/or adds new meaning or context to the original work
Image via The Gagosian
This is not the first time the contemporary artist has "borrowed" another person's artwork to aid his own. Well-known for his photographic reproductions and neo-conceptual works, Prince has been taking others' work and repurposing them in slightly different ways since the late 1970s.
Image via Getty Images
An example of the alterations Prince had made, featured in Art In America magazine.
Image via Richard Prince / Art in America Magazine
While Deere has no plans to pursue any legal action against Prince, another subject of Prince's "artwork" has come up with a genius way to fight back against the purported theft.
In a statement issued by SuicideGirls co-founder Missy Suicide, the following print will be sold at a tiny fraction of the price Prince has tagged on to his work.
Image via Suicide Girls Radio's Facebook
"Do we have Mr. Prince's permission to sell these prints? We have the same permission from him that he had from us," she said, accompanied by a winky face emoticon.
Read the full statement [here](https://www.facebook.com/108067899282/photos/a.409879894282.201101.108067899282/10153369843989283/?type=1&theater).
It is somewhat disturbing to know that a photo you've uploaded onto Instagram could potentially end up in an art gallery and sold for thousands without your knowledge
Barring the obvious "set your Instagram account to 'Private'" warning, be careful of what you post on social media. It's one thing to have someone else making loads of money off while infringing upon your copyright, it's another to have a bunch of private photos end up being in the public eye.
