Singaporean artist and model Duan Mei Yue has publicly called out Russian artist Angelina Poveteva for allegedly using her likeness in a nude painting, which was exhibited and sold for $27,000 without her consent.
Duan, 22, expressed her outrage on social media on April 5, calling the act “vulgar” and highlighting the ethical violation of exhibiting and selling a nude painting of her without her permission. She discovered the artwork in 2021 when she was tagged in a TikTok video by Poveteva, which led her to uncover that the painting had been both exhibited and sold.
Upon learning about the sale, Duan contacted Poveteva, who denied using Duan’s photos or selling the artwork. Instead, Poveteva sent Duan images of another model, claiming that she had used those photos as reference for her painting. Duan, however, argued that the features of the other model were photoshopped to resemble her likeness.
The incident escalated when Poveteva’s social media presence seemingly vanished following the exchange.
In an interview with AsiaOne, Duan explained how the incident has affected her, saying, “As dramatic as it sounds, I actually felt like the world crashed down on me… To see myself depicted naked, exhibited, and sold off, I felt like I was being prostituted.”
This isn’t the first time Duan has faced issues with her likeness being used in art without consent. Last March, she was involved in a copyright dispute with Singaporean artist Allison M. Low over artwork displayed at the opening of a Love, Bonito store in Funan Mall.
Duan described this latest violation as deeply personal, stating, “I feel so personally violated.” She is currently considering legal action against Poveteva, though she has been advised that enforcing it may be difficult.
Her tweet about the incident has gone viral, garnering over 23,300 retweets and 53,600 likes, sparking global discussions on the ethics of using models’ likenesses in art. Support for Duan has also poured in from fans and public figures, including local musician Benjamin Kheng, who expressed his solidarity on Instagram.
Duan has called for compensation and apologies from both Poveteva and the artist’s school, and hopes that laws will be enacted to protect individuals from such violations in the future.