Court Battle Looms: Tattoo Artist Kat Von D and Photographer Jeffrey Sedlik Clash Over Miles Davis Portrait in Pivotal Copyright Case

A federal appeals court in Pasadena, California, is set to address a significant copyright dispute involving photographer Jeffrey Sedlik and renowned tattoo artist Kat Von D. The case, which involves a tattoo recreation of a Miles Davis portrait, has the potential to redefine aspects of artistic interpretation and copyright law in the United States. On Monday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit will livestream oral arguments at 9:30 a.m. from a courtroom on South Grand Avenue. The hearing will review an appeal filed by Sedlik following a jury’s verdict on January 26, … Read more

Study Reveals Our Misguided Tattoo Assumptions: Personality Judgments Are Often Way Off!

East Lansing, Michigan — New research from Michigan State University reveals that people are remarkably inaccurate at evaluating personality traits based on tattoos. The findings suggest that individuals often make snap judgments about others’ personalities from their body art, but those assumptions are frequently incorrect. The study involved 274 tattooed adults who took an in-depth personality test and provided photographs of their tattoos along with detailed explanations of their meanings. A group of 30 raters, including psychology students and faculty, assessed these images. Some raters received the accompanying descriptions, while others did not, yet both … Read more

Celebrity Tattoo Artist Kat Von D Cleared of Copyright Infringement in Landmark Case

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – In a recent copyright infringement case, famous tattoo artist Katherine von Drachenberg, commonly known as Kat von D, successfully defended herself against claims that she used a copyrighted photograph of jazz musician Miles Davis without permission. The case, Sedlik v. von Drachenberg, et al, hinged on whether Kat von D’s tattoo of the Davis portrait was substantially similar to the original photograph owned by photographer Jeffrey Sedlik. The jury, after a brief deliberation, unanimously ruled in favor of Kat von D, stating that her tattoo art did not infringe on Sedlik’s … Read more

Kat Von D’s Legal Victory: Miles Davis Tattoo Sparks Copyright Battle

Los Angeles, California – Tattoo artist and entrepreneur Kat Von D recently won a copyright lawsuit over a tattoo design she created featuring jazz legend Miles Davis. The lawsuit alleged that Von D infringed on the copyright of artist Kirsten Holliday by using a similar tattoo design without permission. However, a federal judge ruled in favor of Von D, stating that her design was original and not substantially similar to Holliday’s work. The dispute began in 2018 when Holliday claimed that Von D copied her original design, which featured a black and gray portrait of … Read more