âBrand Innovations for Ubiquitous Authorship: A group exhibition stolen by Eva and Franco Mattesâ, Carroll/Fletcher, London, 23 April â 11 May 2013. Curated by Eva and Franco Mattes.
For this exhibition Eva and Franco Mattes used the exhibition concept, rather than the exhibition contents of Brand Innovations for Ubiquitous Authorship, an exhibition curated by Artie Vierkant and held at Higher Pictures, New York in 2012. The use of the exhibition concept was deliberate and undisguised, so much so, that Mattes and Mattes used a copy of the Higher Picturesâ exhibition press release for their own press release, with track changes used to alter only certain key details. A disclaimer at the bottom of the press release notes that the âExhibition concept [was] stolen from Artie Vierkantâs show by the same titleâ. Putting aside the copyright infringement issues which may arise from the use of the Higher Pictures press release, this act of âstealingâ the exhibition concept is signficant. It alludes to the sensitivities involved in the use of  intellectual ideas, which exist notwithstanding that the idea-expression divide limits the scope of copyright protection to the expression of an idea, rather than an idea itself.
