Danish Artist Accuses TV Presenter Maha El-Saghir of Stealing Artwork: "A Crime According to the Law"

Danish artist Lisa Lash Nelson accused Egyptian TV presenter Maha El-Saghir of stealing one of her artworks and attributing it to herself without permission, in an incident that sparked a debate about intellectual property rights violations.

Incident Details

El-Saghir appeared on the first episode of June last year on the program "Maakom Mona El-Shazly" on ON channel, where she talked about her passion for painting and presented a painting she claimed to be her own creation. However, Lisa Lash Nelson revealed on her Instagram account that the painting titled "I Made Myself Some Wings" was drawn by her in 2019, confirming that El-Saghir appropriated the work without acknowledging the original source.

Statements by the Danish Artist: "A Crime According to the Law"

Lisa posted saying: "It's wonderful to see your work on the big screen in a TV program in Egypt _ a country with 140 million people _ but it would have been more appropriate to mention my name. Maha El-Saghir forgot that and claimed to have painted the artwork herself. Copying artworks is one thing, but directly photographing a painting and claiming public ownership... that's new to me!"

She added: "I chose to consider it a compliment that Maha loved my work to the extent of committing a crime according to Egyptian and international law and the Bern Convention. But after ignoring my attempts to communicate, she reposted my painting that has been used globally as a symbol of freedom, and I'm proud of that."

She also explained that she granted permission to Bobby Sparrow to use the painting as a cover for his book because he politely requested it, unlike what happened with El-Saghir.

Program Management Acknowledgment and Audience Reaction

The team of the program "Maakom Mona El-Shazly" quickly corrected the information on their Facebook page, stating: "The painting is the creation of the Danish artist Lisa Lash Nelson. We respect real creators and appreciate their original creations."

It is worth noting that Maha El-Saghir had been involved in legal disputes with her ex-husband Ahmed El-Sakka, related to assault accusations, further intensifying the media spotlight on the current incident.

Legal Background

The Bern Convention protects the rights of authors in artistic works and prohibits misappropriation or unauthorized use, which may subject the offenders to legal penalties.