One man's "piece de resistance" is another man's infringed copyright, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday in federal court in St. Louis.
Eastman is a prominent self-taught photographer. His photographs have appeared in Time and Life magazines and are in the collections of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art among other museums, the lawsuit says.Designer Martyn Lawrence-Bullard wrote to Eastman in January about using the picture -- "Isabella's Two Chairs 1999" -- on the show. Eastman agreed to let Bullard use the picture, but he claims Bullard gave the impression that he would use only a smaller, framed, black-and-white limited edition photograph. Bullard also said he would give Eastman credit on the show.Michael Kahn and Geoff Gerber, of The BrickHouse Law Group in St. Louis, represent Eastman.Prominent St. Louis photographer Michael Eastman claims that an interior designer starring on Bravo's "Million Dollar Decorators" went overboard when he featured a photo by Eastman as a mural in television hostess Daisy Fuentes' home. The photo, taken in Havana, Cuba, shows two armchairs under a chandelier in a dilapidated ballroom.Bullard, who was returning Wednesday night from a trip to London, did not return a message seeking comment by press time. Press contacts at NBCUniversal, Bravo's parent company, and Goodbye Pictures, the show's producer, also did not respond to requests for comment by press time. A Warner Bros. spokesman said in an email the company had no immediate comment.A color version of the photo was enlarged, however, at a Warner Bros. facility and installed as the "piece de resistance" of the redecoration of Fuentes' home. Eastman never was mentioned on the show.According to the lawsuit:
The case is Michael Eastman and Michael Eastman Images Inc. v. NBCUniversal Media LLC; Bravo Media LLC, Goodbye Pictures Inc., Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. and Martyn Lawrence Bullard, 4:11- cv-01296.
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