There’s A Plagiarism Storm A’Brewing, And At Its Centre Is Taylor Swift

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Published

December 14, 2015

The 1989 World Tour might have wrapped up on our familiar shores, and Taylor Swift and her associated crew may have made a hasty exit from Australia – but as it turns out, controversy doesn’t sleep. And while Tay was enduring the marathon slog that is an AUS > USA long-haul flight, a new one reared its head.

New Orleans-based artist and designer Ally Burguieres has posted an impassioned plea to the singer over an image of hers that has apparently been misappropriated by an unknown someone – and one that was subsequently validated by Swift herself.

Burguieres’ signature fox design – one that features heavily across her online store – was posted across Swift’s social media outlets, accompanied by lyrics to 1989-deep cut “I Know Places.”

Only problem there is that Burguieres’ name was not attributed to the image. Someone else’s was.

Though after registering a complaint, Swift’s media teams swiftly (pun not intended but gleefully claimed) took down the offending image, but by then the internet had already latched onto it. And, at time of writing, it was still easily searchable.

After an offer from Swift’s team of “four-figure” compensation that carried the stipulation that it must be donated in full to charity, Burguieres took to Facebook with an impassioned open letter to Swifty Cent herself, posing the tried-and-true argument that struggling artists everywhere are intimately familiar with: “I can’t pay my rent with exposure and good intentions.”

Okay, I pretty much put it out there already, so may as well just put it all out there. Thank you so much…

Posted by Ally Burguieres on Friday, 11 December 2015

“Dear Taylor Swift,

I am a professional artist. With years of work and support from customers, friends, and family, I have built a business around my designs and am (hopefully_ adding my own small form of beauty to the world. I now have three shops in New Orleans and gratefully rely on people who demonstrate that art they love is worth paying for. I may “only” have 1239 followers on Instagram, but I believe my work has value. I believe there are many others out there like me.

As a professional artist, I was astonished to see you use one of my most popular designs on all your official social media platforms as part of your promotions for 1989. While I wondered why no one had sought permission or offered compensation to do so, I recognised that such endorsement is a once-in-a-lifetime boost for an artist and can skyrocket an artist’s career. Friends congratulated me and customers expressed joy. But congratulations turned to confusion. The design was a copy, and with someone else’s name signed to it.

I was devastated, but I took solace in thinking that someone so outspoken about artists’ rights would willingly fix her mistake. Mistakes are easy to make; I thought if you only KNEW about the error, you would do what is in your power to make it right. I was wrong. My efforts to combat the pirated and unauthorised copy (and your use and distribution of it to millions of people) were noticed, as you removed the post after several days. But the copy had been shared and downloaded countless times, and it seemed neither you nor your team intended on correcting your mistake.

After months of effort, I received an offer from you and your team that mentions no credit to me as the artist of the design, but does include payment of a “four-figure” amount, with the stipulation that I must donate it all. Taylor, as a professional, would you agree to such terms from Apple, or Spotify? My work is my living – it is how I pay bills and support my family and employees. Many of your fans are professional artists, and support themselves and their families with earnings from their intellectual property. Would you really profit from and distribute a copy of their work to millions of people, and then tell them they don’t deserve professional recognition or compensation?

I don’t know what will come of this letter, but for the sake of my own business and on behalf of independent artists like myself, I had to speak up. I have no ill-will toward you, and I appreciate the theoretical virtue of your stance as a defender of art and intellectual property. I simply hope to see your actions fall more in line with the values you claim to hold.