Target quietly removes a t-shirt from its website after being accused of 'stealing the art of a gay Mexican artist'

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Target quietly removes a t-shirt from its website after being accused of 'stealing the art of a gay Mexican artist'

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etsy shirt

Twitter FelixdEon

The original art (left), and Target's t-shirt (right).

  • On Tuesday, artist Felix d'Eon‏ accused Target of "stealing" one of his designs and putting it on a t-shirt. 
  • "Is this how you support the queer Latinx community, @Target, by stealing the art of a gay Mexican artist?" d'Eon tweeted. 
  • As of Wednesday morning, Target had pulled the t-shirt from its website - but had not publicly responded or apologized. 

 

Target is under fire after selling - then pulling - a t-shirt that appears to use a piece of art without the creator's permission. 

"Target stole a design of mine and printed it on a tshirt,"  artist Felix d'Eon‏ tweeted late on Tuesday. "Is this how you support the queer Latinx community, @Target , by stealing the art of a gay Mexican artist? I'm curious to hear what you have to say!" 

On Wednesday, when Business Insider went to view the "Pride Adult Short Sleeve Igualdad T-Shirt" on the retailer's online store, Target's website said that the product was "currently unavailable."

A cached version of the site shows the t-shirt being sold for $12.99. The description reads: "Pride T-shirt lets you show your support for the LGBTQ+ community."

Screen Shot 2018 05 16 at 10.11.00 AM

Target.com

 

D'Eon is selling a print that looks strikingly similar to the t-shirt design on his Etsy site for $60

Neither D'Eon nor Target immediately responded to Business Insider's request for comment. 

This isn't the first time that Target has been accused of ripping off artists' designs for products. In 2015, Melissa Lay accused the retailer of copying her #merica t-shirt design without her knowledge. Other retailers, including Urban Outfitters and ModCloth, have also been accused of similar actions in recent years. 

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