Ansel Adams trust sues over garage sale negatives SAN JOSE, Calif. – A group representing Ansel Adams sued a California man for selling prints and posters under the name of the famed nature photographer, the latest salvo in a dispute over glass negatives bought at a garage sale and purported to be Adams' lost work.
The lawsuit, filed Monday in federal district court in San Francisco by The Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust, seeks to stop Rick Norsigian and consulting firm PRS Media Partners from using Adams' name, likeness and trademark in their efforts to sell prints and posters not authorized or endorsed by the trust.
The suit alleges trademark infringement, false advertising, trademark dilution, unfair competition and other claims. It does not specify damages but asks the court to order the defendants to pay restitution of their profits from any sales, as well as award any other monetary relief.
Norsigian's lawyer, Arnold Peter, said the lawsuit has no merit and is designed to harass his client and "silence this debate."
"We are disappointed that the Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust has decided to resort to the courts in order to resolve what, in our view, is a debate that should be resolved by art and forensic experts," Peter said in a statement.
Norsigian says he bought the negatives 10 years ago at a Fresno garage sale for $45. He noticed they resembled Adams' famed photographs of Yosemite National Park and hired Peter to assemble a team of experts to authenticate them...
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100824/ap_on_en_ot/us_ansel_adams_lost_work
