Some interesting news from Belgium, the home of internationally acclaimed artists René Magritte, Paul Delvaux and Michaël Borreman.  A few weeks ago an upcoming pop-artist was been sued by luxury conglomerate LVMH.

The painter, who goes by the name Cedric and his company Cedric.Art has come under attack by world renowned Champagne brand Dom Pérignon.  The brand is convinced that his paintings and merchandising (one shirt and one sweater based on his art) could mislead the general public into thinking that Cedric’s items are funded or made on request by Dom Pérignon.

In recent years, Cedric has gained acclaim for organising exhibitions in Belgium, Monte-Carlo, St-Tropez, Paris, London and Marbella. With his major clientele based in Europe, he also sells his works to clients in the USA, the Middle-East and beyond.

In a bid to make his voice heard, Cedric has gone on to launch www.notdomperignon.com on which he has written his first impressions and the thought that this could be an oversight or mistake been made at the headquarters in Reims, France.

Cedric further underscores his argument by stating thus: ‘attacking an upcoming artist would be setting a strange precedent and sending the wrong message to the art community. This is a mistake that can be resolved.’

And he also points out: –  ‘A vision of an artist, what he or she creates, arises from within – a passion, a feeling or an emotion.  My passion on the one hand encompasses painting, executing ideas and creating new things. On the other hand I am intrigued nay fascinated by consumer behaviour.  As you can read on my website : ‘Making a masterpiece into an icon, that’s what fascinates me. Transforming marketing into art’.

A quick reflection on people, companies or brands who are masters in the domain of marketing automatically throws up some famous names in the consumer goods sector.  There is a clear reason why I only use a few brands in my artwork: these brands are iconic, best in their domain and set the pace for the rest of their industry.  In my opinion they epitomize artisanal craftsmanship and refined marketing. 

I bought this domain name to counter the notion that people would get confused and think that, if they see my artwork or the shirt and sweater that I created, they would think Dom Pérignon compensates me for my work.  Let us be clear, nothing could be further from the truth. I guess the fact that they have sued me proves that point.’ –

Attacking the art community is not something luxury brands are reputed for.  On the contrary, luxury brands need the fashion world, celebrities and executive artists and this synergistic relationship is unlikely to change anytime soon. This is exemplified by Dom Pérignon’s recent collaborations with Jeff Koons, Michael Riedel and release of an Andy Warhol series.

We at Art-Insider are curious to see how this interesting story unfolds and will keep tabs on how it eventually plays out and its ramifications and implications on the pop-art community.  Pop-art has always been a reflection of what the artist sees in society and has always evolved around famous people, brands etc.