The lawsuit stems from a 2022 YouTube video in which Kardashian gave a tour of the offices for her then-new makeup brand, Skkn by Kim. The video, which allegedly received around 3.7 million views, has since been made private following the lawsuit filing.
In the video, Kardashian highlights her office’s minimalist design and specifically praises a sleek, large-scale wooden table with matching chairs that slide neatly beneath it, resembling a brutalist sculpture. “These Donald Judd tables are really amazing and totally blend in with the seats,” she remarked, showing the camera the furniture.
Donald Judd, an artist and sculptor known for his minimalist designs emphasizing clean shapes and industrial materials, created the La Mansana Table and Chair 84 in 1982. These pieces have become iconic among furniture designers and collectors, with the table priced at $90,000 and the chairs at $9,000 each, manufactured and sold by the Judd Foundation.
However, the Judd Foundation claims that the furniture in Kardashian’s video is not authentic. The foundation’s lawsuit, filed against both Kardashian and Clements Design, the interior design firm involved in the Skkn office project, alleges trademark infringement, copyright infringement, unfair competition, false advertising, and false endorsement.
“Consumers who watched the video or read media coverage were misled to believe Ms. Kardashian’s tables and chairs were authentic Donald Judd pieces,” the foundation states in the filing. It seeks the profits Kardashian and Clements Design allegedly made from using Judd’s name.
Clements Design responded by stating they never claimed the furniture was authentic Judd pieces and directed the foundation to settle the issue with Kardashian. The design firm maintains that the pieces created for Kardashian’s office had “obvious key differences” from Judd’s designs. They claim that previous attempts to resolve the issue with the Judd Foundation were unsuccessful.
The lawsuit also claims that Kardashian’s furniture was made from plywood, a material unauthorized by the Judd Foundation. “These poor-quality imitations masquerading as authentic Donald Judd tables and chairs harm the Donald Judd brand,” the lawsuit argues.
The foundation states that it offered to replace the counterfeit furniture with authentic pieces at a discount if Kardashian issued a retraction and edited the video. Representatives for Kardashian allegedly offered to promote the Judd Foundation in a social media post and issue a retraction in the video caption, but the foundation rejected these offers.
Kardashian has not responded to requests for comment.
Donald Judd, who passed away in 1994, was selective about who could manufacture and sell his designs, emphasizing high-quality materials. Only a few authorized galleries and stores, such as the MoMA Design Store and Salon 94 in New York, are permitted to sell his furniture.
