The Court of Appeal in Rennes, France, recently ruled against artist Xavier Marabout for "parasitising" the work of celebrated Belgian cartoonist Hergé. Marabout's work features Tintin and other characters from the iconic series in paintings inspired by the world of painter Edward Hopper, Le Soir revealed on Friday.
'Sexy Suey', 'Summer tour in a Bugatti Torpedo', and 'Moulinsart in the sun' are the titles of some of Marabout's paintings. They picture Hergé's key characters Tintin, Snowy, Captain Haddock, Bianca Castafiore, Nestor, Tournesol and the Thompson brothers in a risqué and realistic adult world.
Tintin revu par Xavier Marabout. pic.twitter.com/lLigWj4Jci
— Stéphane Bergès (@Revizorsb) March 27, 2021
Tintinimaginatio, the company which holds exclusive worldwide rights to the reproduction, adaptation and representation of Hergé's work, has taken the case to court. It claims that the paintings undermine the spirit of Tintin's adventures and distort them.
The Belgian company takes particular issue with the presence of "female characters contrary to Hergé's expressly stated intention during his lifetime." Lawyers pointed to "powerful elements of sensuality," such as the presence of "callipygian women", or "disruptive" elements such as Tintin "reading a gay magazine" or "Dupond smoking."
Counterfeits created without consent
According to Tintinimaginatio's lawyers, Marabout's paintings are essentially unauthorised counterfeits of elements from Hergé's work. As a result, the artist was ordered to halt the sale of his Tintin paintings in 2015. However, Marabout launched an appeal in May 2021 and the French courts initially ruled in his favour. The artist was granted the "right to parody".
But the Rennes Court of Appeal reviewed this ruling on 4 June 2024. While it confirmed that there was no breach of moral rights in this case, the court ordered the artist to cease all forms of reproduction, as well as monetising his works featuring the original Tintin characters, Le Soir reports.
Tintinimaginatio stated that while "transformative works are not, in themselves, prohibited", they require "the consent of the original work's author". In this case, Marabout never sought permission to reproduce the characters.
Xavier Marabout
morning ride pic.twitter.com/85zur5W8gf — gregorio catarino (@gregcatarino1) March 24, 2021
Marabout argues that he intended "to pay tribute to the heroes of his childhood as well as to the great masters of painting, by mixing their worlds with a humorous intention".
The court eventually ordered the painter to pay Tintinimaginatio an advance of €15,000 as compensation for damages. An additional €5,000 compensation was demanded for his "acts of parasitism." Marabout has been allowed to keep the disputed paintings.
