Photographer claims tattoo artist Kat Von D 'robbed' his work

A Pasadena photographer told a jury Wednesday that celebrity tattoo artist Kat Von D "robbed" him of his work when she inked his photographed portrait of jazz icon Miles Davis on her friend's arm and shared the results on social media.

"When my work is used without a license, I'm robbed of that work," plaintiff Jeffrey Sedlik told the court as he was questioned by his attorney, Robert E. Allen of Glaser Weil Fink Howard Jordan and Shapiro LLP.

Sedlik said that because Von D, whose legal name is Katherine Von Drachenberg, shared several photos of the finished tattoo to millions of her followers, it opened the door for others to unlawfully use his copyrighted image. He said this "drastically" depleted him financially because he lost out on licensing fees.

However, while Von D was under questioning from Allen, she testified her rendition of the image was not an exact replication and instead her own interpretation of a photo that was sent to her by her assistant. She said she did not make any money off of the tattoo, nor did she have plans to.

"As a tattooer, I'm not trying to be a camera. ... Instead of recreating the photo, I used smoke and negative space to create my own textures and compositions," which she said was intended to bleed into other photos on her friend's arm. She said the plan was to create an arm sleeve with other images of Davis to serve as a tribute.

"I did my interpretations of the photo and made adjustments to it," she added. "I'm literally just tattooing something for my friend as a gift because he loves Miles Davis. ... I consider this fan art. That's all tattooing is, man."

The case before U.S. District Judge Dale S. Fischer involves a lawsuit where Sedlik claims Von D infringed his copyrighted image of Davis to promote her brand through social media posts on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube. Jeffrey B. Sedlik v. Katharine Von Drachenberg et al., 2:21-cv-01102 (C.D. filed Feb. 7, 2021).

Von D's attorney, Allen B. Grodsky of Grodsky Olecki & Puritsky LLP, argued the tattoo was fair use and Sedlik's photo was only used as inspiration to create a "completely different" work for her friend, Blake Farmer, in 2017.

Von D said in her two decades of work as an artist, this was her first time getting sued over copyright claims related to her tattoos. She said she never had to acquire a license for images before, nor had she ever heard of other tattoo artists having to acquire one.

Farmer testified the tattoo was offered by Von D free of charge as a gift. He said he found the photo through a random Google search and sent it to Von D's assistant.

Images of the text exchanges were shared in court, which displayed the photo without Sedlik's watermark.

Sedlik's lawyer, Allen, argued Von D intentionally cropped out the watermark. Von D argued she only uses what's sent to her by her assistant and doesn't print the images herself.

The photo was taken by Sedlik 1989. The image depicts Davis staring into the camera while holding his right index finger to his lips. The image was first published on the cover of JAZZIZ magazine in August 1989 and registered with the United States Copyright Office in 1994.

Sedlik, who said he has been a photographer for 35 years, said he relies on the licensing fees from his published photos to support himself and his family.

Side by side photo comparisons of the photo and tattoo were shared in court. Sedlik said everything from the unique finger placement to the skin textures were exactly the same.

However, Von D disagreed. She said aside from the space in the background, Davis' hair highlights, shoulder placement, and jawline was freely drawn as her own interpretation of how she viewed Davis.

The jury was shown Instagram videos that showed Von D tracing Sedlik's photo onto a sheet. However, Von D said the line drawings she traced were only meant to "map out" the placement of the tattoo. "I always use it as a guide. ... The line drawings aren't what's tatted. My art is meant to be more abstract than what I'm given... ."

Von D rose to prominence in the mid 2000s following the success of her television shows "LA Ink" and "Miami Ink," which showcased her and others working at her former tattoo shop, "High Voltage."

Following the success of the shows, she said she stopped charging clients for tattoos "about a decade ago" and wanted her tattoos to serve as gifts for her friends and close acquaintances.

Von D is expected to return to the stand Thursday.