London: Renowned artist Anish Kapoor has threatened legal action after a Chinese artist arranged for a sculpture almost identical to Kapoor's 'Cloud Gate' in Chicago. Representatives of the British-Indian said he was shocked at the “blatant plagiarism” after the copy was unveiled in Karaway, in Xinjiang, China.
Kapoor said, “It seems that in China today it is permissible to steal the creativity of others. I feel I must take this to the highest level and pursue those responsible in the courts. I hope that the Mayor of Chicago will join me in this action. The Chinese authorities must act to stop this kind of infringement and allow the full enforcement of copyright.”
Meanwhile, officials in Karamay have declined to name the artist except to state that he is Chinese. Ma Jun, from the local tourism bureau, said the works are different as Kapoor’s sculpture is “a bean shape” while the Karamay version is designed to mimic an oil bubble; a reference to a nearby oil well.
“The idea of the oil bubble comes from the Black Oil Mountain, which is a natural oil well in Karamay,” he said. “You can’t say we’re not allowed to build a round sculpture because there already is a round one. While we use similar materials, the shapes and meanings are different. Cloud Gate intends to reflect the sky, but ours reflects the ground.” The Chinese installation is surrounded by smaller bubbles and has coloured lights projected on its underside.
