H&M Dismisses Lawsuit Against Graffiti Artist Jason 'REVOK' Williams

The lawsuit against the artist has officially been dropped.

A pedestrian under an umbrella walks past the H&M logo.
Getty

Image via Richard Baker / In Pictures

A pedestrian under an umbrella walks past the H&M logo.

H&M has officially dismissed its lawsuit against artist Jason "REVOK" Williams, according to the Washington Post. Williams' attorney Jeff Gluck confirmed the news on an Instagram post published on Friday. "I can confirm as of this morning H&M has voluntarily dismissed their lawsuit," he said in the caption. "This is still far from over. We will be filing a lawsuit against H&M and working to further establish artists’ rights."

The company used Williams' artwork in the background of a campaign shoot and hit back at Williams' cease and desist with their own lawsuit, stating the work was "a product of criminal conduct" and he had no copyright rights. They since issued an apology for the move. Williams told Hypebeast even if H&M had asked beforehand to use his work he "would have said no." He later added, "H&M sees value in my art to help sell their products, but sees no value in me or my work."

Fellow visual artists like KAWS, Daniel Arsham, STASH, and TATS CRU have not only shared their criticisms of H&M's actions, but also see it as a threat to artists' rights. “The problem [with this case] is the precedent it could set which would make lives more difficult for artists in the public domain,” said street art photographer Daniel Weintraub.

Producer Swizz Beatz, who has also been vocal about the lawsuit, celebrated the dismissal by posting an image of H&M's market summary to his Instagram page. "What happens when you don't treat artists fairly," he captioned the post. "H&M I’m happy the case is dropped 100% this time, #thecreativeswillwin. Look at March 15th, #positivevibesonly."

You can read the full story on Hypebeast.

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