Wednesday, March 23, 2011

555 Banksy lawsuit drawing to conclusion

Last spring the 555 Gallery, a Detroit non-profit, salvaged artwork created by the world renowned anonymous, artist Banksy from the crumbling Packard plant. The action created quite a stir among Detroit's art community.

Was the work salvaged or stolen from the abandoned facility? A debate in the media and online ensued. As the story drew more attention, a group claiming to own the Packard Plant filed a suit against the 555 Gallery.

Friday July 11, 2010 Yahoo Wire Service via The Detroit News:  What began as a scandal in the Detroit art community has now, like so much in America, turned into a lawsuit.
Bioresource Inc., the company that claims to own the derelict Packard Motor Car plant on Detroit's east side, is suing the 555 Nonprofit Studio and Gallery in Detroit, demanding the return of a mural removed from the plant. Ownership of the plant has been the subject of a long-running legal dispute.
The art in question was allegedly painted by the celebrated English graffiti artist Banksy, who's won worldwide fame for his politically charged artworks.

Almost a year later the lawsuit is nearing an end. The legal question of who actually owns the Packard plant seems to be behind the dropping of the suit. Pursing a suit case against the 555 Gallery could put the alleged owners (Bioresource Inc.) on a legal hook.

The suit against the 555 is asking for hundreds of thousands of dollars, the City of Detroit wants the owners to raze the structure and that costs a lot more. Why try to sue for thousands  if the result would be (by admitting ownership) paying potentially millions to Detroit?

555 Gallery Director Carl Goines says the whole ordeal should be wrapped up within two weeks. "The plaintiffs unexpectedly dropped the suit last week, so it's in the public record. But it's  not completely done."

Goines says the lawyer representing Bioresource Inc is requesting the 555 Gallery pay his legal fees.

The 555 board of directors will meet and make a decision on a response to the lawyer's request. According to Goines if the suit is not completely dropped, depositions are scheduled to begin in April.

Goines did not say what the future holds for the Banksy piece. Banksy works have sold for as much as $500,000. He was the subject of a 2011 academy award nominated documentary.


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