A prominent artist took words without credit or consent. What’s owed is a public apology. Royalties must be paid. Pull the work or retire it. The senior artist has the platform to push for real change on consent and credit, especially when borrowing from protest voices.
The creator whose work was taken was right to be angry but mishandled the response. Going public before direct, documented outreach turned justified anger into mob spectacle. The focus shifted from resolution to shaming. A mature conversation was lost.
The gallery should’ve stepped in earlier, mediating between both parties.
Avoid character assassination. Critique the act, not the person. Stop harping on caste to score points—weaponising identity shuts down real conversation. Shaming helps no one. Accountability does.
Fact: One took without asking. The other fought back clumsily. Fixing this needs guts and maturity from all sides. Anything less is noise.
Update: Public apology was given, the gallery acted and both parties are in conversation for a resolution.