Makeup artist and LVMH brand kiss and make up
Makeup artist Vlada Haggerty and Make Up For Ever (MUFE) have put an end to their trademark and copyright dispute over ‘dripping lip’ photographs.
The Ukrainian makeup artist shared the news on Instagram yesterday, August 22.
LA-based Haggerty accused luxury fashion conglomerate LVMH’s (Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy) makeup brand MUFE of trademark and copyright infringement in January this year, in a complaint filed at the US District Court for the Central District of California.
Haggerty is particularly well known for her “close-up photographs of lips decorated with unique makeup designs”, according to the complaint. Her clients have included Disney Style, NYX Cosmetics, and Vogue.
Her works featuring distinctive ‘dripping lip’ makeup styles were initially published on Haggerty’s Instagram. They have also been included in beauty and fashion publications.
In addition, Haggerty’s ‘Rose Gold Lip Art’ is registered as a trademark (number 5,296,027) for services related to makeup.
Haggerty accused MUFE of adopting a logo for its new line of ‘Lustrous’ cosmetics “which directly copied Ms Haggerty’s most famous trademark and copyrighted works” after Haggerty declined the makeup brand’s requests to use her dripping lip art in promotional material.
The Lustrous logo depicts rose gold dripping lips with the same drip pattern as Haggerty’s copyright-protected ‘Liquid Gold’ style, the claim said, adding that MUFE’s new logo has identical textures and highlighting.
Haggerty asked the court for permanent injunctive relief, triple damages, and a disgorgement of all of MUFE’s worldwide profits from the sale of the ‘Lustrous’ cosmetics line.
Yesterday, Haggerty took to Instagram to reveal that she has reached “a confidential resolution” with MUFE.
“Protecting my rights and the rights of artists is important to me,” she said.
MUFE also shared news of the resolved dispute on Instagram yesterday.
“The makeup art of the wonderful @vladamua was an inspiration for our Lustrous 2017 Holiday Special. We have reached a confidential resolution with her and look forward to her continued success,” the company said.
Many fans of Haggerty commented on MUFE’s post. One user said “Do not steal”, and another commented, “You could just pay the artists and credit them in the first place to avoid this”.
Terms of the settlement have not been made public.
Haggerty also threatened Kylie Jenner with legal action over her lip art in 2016. She said Jenner’s makeup branding imagery, which included red lip art covered by gold hands, had been copied from her Instagram account. The makeup creatives settled their differences in January 2017.
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