Case Review: Foster v. Svenson (2015)

By Christopher Visentin

Following up on a remarkable decision from 2013, this April 9th the New York Appellate Division of the Supreme Court affirmed the Supreme Court’s dismissal of a family’s right of privacy claim in favor of an artist’s freedom of expression.

Two years ago Matthew and Martha Foster filed a complaint alleging breach of privacy against photographer Arne Svenson after learning that they, as well as their two young children, were subjects of Svenson’s series of photographs entitled “The Neighbors”.  For the series, Svenson used a camera with a telephoto lens to capture images of inhabitants of a glass apartment building across the street from his own apartment. Svenson took the photographs without knowledge or permission of his subjects. The Fosters learned of the images through a local publication promoting the exhibition of the photographer’s most recent works.