In a lawsuit based on the violation of copyrights before the United States District Court, Central District of California, the Helmut Newton Foundation (HNF) has prevailed in a court case against Mr Norman Solomon and other defendants (Case No.: 2:22-cv-09320-RGK-SK).
Mr Solomon had been accused of long-standing unlawful manufacture and international distribution of unauthorised and misrepresented prints of numerous celebrated images by Helmut Newton, including such iconic subjects as ‘Rue Aubriot’, ‘Elsa Peretti in a “Bunny” costume by Halston’, ‘Woman into Man’, and the celebrated diptych ‘Sie Kommen’.
A first case against him was pursued in 2011 by June Newton, the photographer’s widow. This was settled in 2012 in her favour, with obligations for Solomon to desist these unlawful activities. Solomon unlawfully ignored the settlement terms and was soon back in business, leading eventually to the second lawsuit and the recent judgement and court order.
Solomon has consistently compounded his fraudulent activity by making unauthorised ‘Certificates of Authenticity’, by claiming the prints that he is selling are in fact ‘vintage’, that is to say made in Helmut Newton’s lifetime and with his approval, by the fabrication of supposed provenances, and by suggesting, without basis, that he has formal authority to publish and distribute Helmut Newton’s work.
According to the court order, defendants, including Solomon, must refrain from reproducing, preparing derivatives of, distributing copies of, or otherwise displaying the photography that was subject of the lawsuit, or any works of Helmut Newton. They were ordered by the court to deliver up for destruction all infringing Helmut Newton prints in their possession. Moreover, defendants have been ordered to pay substantial damages to the HNF plus attorneys’ fees.
This ruling is an important step in the HNF’s ongoing fight against the distribution of illegal copies of Newton’s images. As a consequence, the HNF takes the position that all Helmut Newton images in the market that refer to Norman Solomon as a source or for authentication must be considered as fakes that have to be delivered to the HNF for immediate safekeeping. This includes also distributors who have not been named parties in that legal dispute but who continue to sell Helmut Newton images made to the instruction of and/or with ‘Certificates of Authenticity’ issued by Mr Solomon. This applies, for example, to a company called ‘Global Images’ which in the meantime has also been sued for copyright violation in the Los Angeles court (Case No.: 2:2025cv01984).
The HNF has a responsibility to the legacy of Helmut Newton and seeks to raise awareness of the unlawful copying and distribution of his images and to protect against the consequent risk of damage to his reputation.
Helmut Newton (1920-2004) earned an international reputation as a photographer for his distinctive, often provocative approach, principally in the fields of fashion, portraiture and nudes.
Credits: © Courtesy of HNF
