When Icelandic artist Oddur Eysteinn Friðriksson, otherwise known as Odee, used his work to highlight the fallout from the activities of fishing company Samherji in Namibia, he probably didn’t expect to find himself in the High Court in London.
An artwork presented as his graduation piece spoofed the look and feel of the Samherji’s, replicating its logos and typefaces to present itself as an apology by the company. This was accompanied by a website convincingly designed to impersonate Samherji’s online presence, and a spoof press release distributed to the media announcing Samherji’s unreserved apology for its conduct in Namiba in relation to allegations of bribery of officials.
Unsurprisingly, Samherji weren’t impressed. The spoof website was quickly taken down and last week the case was heard by the High Court in London.
‘This behaviour is, of course, unacceptable and has nothing to do with art or freedom of expression,’ a Samherji representative stated following the hearing at the High Court, where the artist turned up to defend himself while Samherji had marshalled a phalanx of lawyers to put its case that centres around damage to the company’s reputation and the abuse of its trademarks.
Samherji also claims that ‘this abuse did not only have an artistic purpose, as Oddur Eysteinn claims. In addition, an attempt was made to get money from Samherji by signing up an advertising agency to publish advertising material of the same type against payment from Samherji.’
The company states that Odee was invited to settle this case by relinquishing the domain name and undertaking not to repeat the stunt.
Instead, Oddur Eysteinn Friðriksson chose to have his day in court – seeking to highlight the situation in Namibia.
‘We’re Sorry is more than just an artwork—it is a conceptual and performative piece that places an apology at the forefront. This apology is, in my view, the only path to a solution in this situation. It is painfully obvious to everyone, except for Samherji themselves, that an apology is needed,’ he stated.
‘This is what the Namibian people rightfully deserve,’ he said, commenting that the record of Samherji’s activity in Namibia, which is still under investigation in Namibia, has damaged the relationship between Namibia and Iceland.
‘Let me be clear, I unequivocally condemn the actions of Samherji. Their unethical practices, including bribery and corruption, have had a devastating impact on Namibia,’ he said.
‘I call on Samherji to act with transparency and ethics. It is time for them to take full responsibility for their actions and work towards making things right.’
The High Court hearing has attracted widespread media coverage around the world – far more than the original stunt did, and it’s questionable whether the decision to pursue this matter so publicly has triggered something of a Streisand effect.
