Kim Kardashian’s home decor has landed her in hot water.
The reality star-turned-mogul was sued by artist Donald Judd’s estate Wednesday for allegedly passing off “knockoff versions” of Judd’s furniture as the real deal.
“These Donald Judd tables are really amazing and totally blend in with the seats,” Kardashian says in a since-deleted 2022 video tour of her Skkn by Kim office, showing off a selection of minimalist wooden pieces that look similar to two Judd designs: La Mansana Table 22 and Chair 84.
According to the New York Times, the artist’s originals cost $90,000 and $9,000, respectively.
But per lawsuit documents obtained by Page Six Style, the “Kardashians” star, 43, used interior design firm Clements Design to outfit her office, with the Judd Foundation claiming that the company “manufactured and sold knockoff versions” of Judd’s designs and then installed them in the star’s workspace.
The docs also allege that Clements Design used photos of the original Judd table and chairs in its proposal for the Skims founder, “deceptively advertising that the works that would be provided to Ms. Kardashian were authorized, authentic Donald Judd furniture.”
It also states that Kardashian fans and art aficionados alike “would expect Ms. Kardashian to own and display authentic — not fake — Donald Judd furniture and to have the real and true — not false — endorsements of celebrities, designers or artists with whom Ms. Kardashian discusses working or mentions by name.”
In a statement, Clements Design tells Page Six Style the foundation’s claims “have absolutely no merit.”
“This issue was brought to our attention over a year ago. We communicated with the Judd Foundation’s counsel and explained to them in no uncertain terms that there were obvious key differences between the tables and chairs in Kim’s office and the Judd Foundation’s tables and chairs,” the firm says.
“The Judd Foundation’s prior counsel acknowledged these differences and since then, we have not heard from them in over a year, and are now being blindsided with a lawsuit. Efforts were made to resolve this issue amicably at the time and the Judd Foundation was unwilling to settle on reasonable terms.”
The Judd Foundation, meanwhile, exclusively tells Page Six Style that it is “surprised” by the interior design firm’s claims that the parties attempted to settle the dispute prior to its legal filing.
“Judd Foundation repeatedly attempted to gain clarity from Clements Design and Kim Kardashian about how and why they copied and promoted fake furniture as being authentically Donald Judd’s,” the foundation tells us.
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“The fact of the matter is that Clements Design sold Ms. Kardashian fake copies of the Donald Judd La Mansana Table and Donald Judd Chair 84, using Judd Foundation’s copyrighted photo to do so. Ms. Kardashian then promoted the furniture as being ‘Donald Judd’ to millions of her social media followers.”
The foundation claims that Clements Design “refused to take any steps to resolve this matter,” so it “reluctantly resorted to litigation in order to protect its intellectual property rights and the significance of Donald Judd’s timeless designs.”