United States First Circuit

In a dispute between an artist and a museum over the implementation and installation of a football-field sized artwork, judgment of the district court in favor of the museum is affirmed in part, vacated in part and remanded where: 1) the Visual Artists Rights Act (VARA) applies to unfinished works, and as such, genuine issues of material fact forecloses summary judgment on one of the artist's VARA claims - that the museum violated his right of artistic integrity by modifying the installation; and 2) the artist asserted a viable claim under the Copyright Act that the museum violated his exclusive right to display his work publicly.

Appellate Information

• Decided 01/27/2010
• Published 01/27/2010

Judges

• LIPEZ, Circuit Judge., Before LIPEZ and HOWARD, Circuit Judges, and WOODCOCK, District Judge.

Court

• United States First Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• George T. Conway III, with whom Elaine P. Golin, Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, John C. Blessington, Sara E. Yevics, K & L Gates LLP, Elena M. Paul, Sergio Muñoz Sarmiento, and Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts were on brief, for appellant.


• For Appellees:
  
• John L. Gardiner, with whom Elizabeth A. Hellmann, Kurt Wm. Hmr, Lindsay R. Dickerson, and adden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP were on brief, for appellee.