A good bit back, I wrote a piece about authors who loathed adaptations of their work. For example, Stanley Kubrick managed to make two films—A Clockwork Orange and The Shining—which are considered among some of the best he ever directed, which also pissed off the authors of the source material something awful. Stephen King hates Kubrick's version of The Shining and on different occasions called it “cold” and lacking in any sort of emotional connection or story arc. For King, his book was about a normal man who‘s struggling with alcoholism while being a father and husband and goes crazy, where Kubrick's film is about the stylistic visuals which occur around a dude who’s crazy from scene one and goes absolutely bonkers in a hotel with his family. King has also stated that he disliked what Kubrick did with the character of Wendy Torrance, and feels the depiction was sexist.
The late great Prince did not like covers of his music, so much so he once had cease and desist complaints sent to Twitter and Vine over six second video clips of people singing his songs. Sinead O’Connor’s “Nothing Compares 2 U” is actually a cover of a song written by Prince for a side project called The Family. While at the time of its release Prince seemed to be flattered by the track’s success, he seems to have come to believe covers destroyed his ownership of his own work.
If there’s a consistent complaint among the more famous examples, it’s the idea that someone is using someone else’s work to make an interpretation of it which the original artist doesn’t agree with or thinks misses the point. On the other hand is the argument that art should not be limited to what an artist thinks it should mean and is open to all sorts of permutations and interpretations.
Something similar is happening right now in New York, where there’s an argument over whether two works complement each other. Last month, as part of International Women’s Day, investment firm State Street Global Advisors (SSGA) placed a bronze sculpture in the path of Wall Street’s “Charging Bull.” Entitled “Fearless Girl,” and sculpted by Kristen Visbal, it depicts a young girl staring down the bull as a statement of women being up to the task of facing the challenges in the financial sector. However, the artist who created the “Charging Bull,” Arturo Di Modica, objects to the installation of “Fearless Girl” alongside his work, wants it removed, and argues it changes and distorts the meaning of his art.
The “Charging Bull” is a 16-foot long, 7,000 pound bronze sculpture created shortly after the Black Monday stock market crash of 1987. According to Di Modica, he intended the bull to represent “the strength and power of the American people.” The bull was originally installed as guerrilla art, without a permit, leading to NYPD removing it. However, public sentiment led to the bull being given a permanent place of residence in the financial district.
Di Modica objects to the placement of “Fearless Girl” on the grounds that it’s a publicity stunt to sell an index fund, and it arguably turns the bull into a malevolent force that could be interpreted as menacing a little girl who’s supposed to be a representation of women trying to be leaders in business. Defenders of the “Fearless Girl” point out the street is a public forum and art is open to an infinite amount of interpretations, not just the one an artist likes.
The plaque for “Fearless Girl” has the inscription:
"Know the power of women in leadership. SHE makes a difference,"
The “SHE” has a double meaning, and is a reference to the Gender Diversity Index SHE, which tracks companies that are gender diverse and was created by investment firm State Street Global Advisors, who sponsored the statue. But according to State Street, they also intended the sculpture to bring attention to the fact women hold less than a fifth of seats on U.S. corporate boards.
Therefore, technically, it could be described as an advertisement which uses Di Modica’s art to raise a product’s brand awareness ... while making a statement about gender in the workplace. Di Modica’s attorney, Norman Siegel, is arguing the “Fearless Girl” sculpture is a commercial use of “Charging Bull,” and violates Di Modica’s trademark to his work.
From Sapna Maheshwari at The New York Times:
State Street Global Advisors, which is based in Boston, has been a vocal advocate for gender diversity at companies, pushing for more women on boards and in leadership roles, and was looking for a unique way to highlight that message, said Stephen Tisdalle, its chief marketing officer. The agency has three women on its 11-member board, according to its website.
“What this girl represents is the present, but also the future,” Mr. Tisdalle said in an interview, adding that the firm was open to making the statue a permanent fixture. “She’s not angry at the bull — she’s confident, she knows what she’s capable of, and she’s wanting the bull to take note.”
Mayor Bill De Blasio announced on March 27 the city would extend a permit allowing the “Fearless Girl” sculpture to remain at its current spot for another year.
Di Modica is now threatening legal action to challenge that permit and seek the girl’s removal.
From Katie Mettler at The Washington Post:
The girl quickly became an online sensation, earning praise from Chelsea Clinton and actress Jessica Chastain and drawing its own swarm of women and girls who felt inspired.
This overt reference to State Street’s SHE Index could contribute to Di Modica insistence that “Fearless Girl” is nothing more than marketing trickery orchestrated by the firm’s New York advertising partner, McCann.
“That is not a symbol!” the 76-year-old Sicilian immigrant told the New York Post and Market Watch in March.
He said in an interview from his art studio that his protest was not meant to snub the importance of gender equality, but to defend the integrity of his bull.
“I put it there for art,” he told the publications. “My bull is a symbol for America. My bull is a symbol of prosperity and for strength.”
Contrasted with the soft, altruistic characteristics of the bronze girl, though, “Charging Bull” now appears menacing and aggressive.
For her part, the creator of the “Fearless Girl” sculpture, Kristen Visbal, released a statement to NBC News today where she disagrees with Di Modica’s assessment.
"The sculpture states men and women share equal footing in finance. In the spirit of American leadership, Fearless Girl, and all who support her, make a call for gender diversity in leadership. For 28 years, Charging Bull has stood alone. There is room for both sculptures," [Visbal] said.