Harper’s Bazaar Accused Of Ripping Off A Bunch Of Feminist Artwork

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The rips in this attempt at feminism by Harper’s Bazaar run bigger than the ones in Kendall Jenner’s jean shorts.

Just days after Jezebel reported the publication used stolen artwork for one of the patches at its jean jacket decorating party with social club The Wing without compensating or getting permission from the artist who created it, the site now reports three other artists’ designs were used without their knowledge.

Harpers bazar, owned by (white male billionaires) Hearst magazine threw a party at @the.wing, an exclusive corporate feminism club. There was a patch making station which features the stolen work of at least one artist from @lestemagazine which says "when women speak it is mostly poetry". Not to mention all the other cringey girl gang and "wild feminist" coopting and propaganda. This is copyright infringement and anti feminist in practice and theory. If u think womens words are poetry then listen to the words of the small press asking for compensation and credit for their work instead of ignoring them to protect a corporation owned by rich white men. This is internalized misogyny. Practice what u preach. Ask @deenersilver to give @lestemagazine credit in her article and for @geometricsleep @tavitulle to credit them for the patch they are promoting and wearing around town. And for all of them including @the.wing to donate to Leste's gofundme (link in their bio) since while people are casually printing patches for Lena Dunhams "girl gang" (which costs hundreds of dollars to make) Leste is out here struggling to pay their contributors. #getartistspaid

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The first pin in question, which reads “When women speak it is mostly poetry,” was created for Leste Magazine, a small publication which currently has a GoFundMe page to help support its production. 

The photo from the party appeared on Get Artists Paid’s Instagram account, which advocates for fair practices and transparency in art and media industries. The caption demanded credit from those who have posted about the patches and compensation from The Wing.

For its part, someone at The Wing issued an apology in the comments section and explained they they did not “approve or sell these patches.” It has also since made a donation to its GoFundMe page.  

Someone from Leste Magazine replied to the the site, saying it “blocked and deleted every comment and everyone who tried to defend us,” adding, “you are not innocent in this at all.”

The other two designs, one that reads “wild feminist,” another that reads “my girls my gang my friends my way” and one that reads “girl gang,” were created by Emma McIlroy, Lotte Andersen and Madison Kramer respectively.

McIlroy told Jezebel she is not looking for compensation but merely a public apology, which she was informed by a representative at Harper’s they were unauthorized to do. 

Independent artists being ripped off by big retailers is unfortunately all too common, and it’s at least refreshing to see The Wing take action in compensating Leste. But using stolen artwork to tout feminism feels especially jarring. Here’s hoping these artists get the money ― and apologies ― they deserve. 

HuffPost has reached out to Leste, Harper’s Bazaar, Emma McIlroy, Lotte Andersen, Madison Kramer and The Wing and will update this post accordingly. 

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