Celebrity News

Aaron Carter sued for using stolen artwork to promote clothing line

Aaron Carter was hit with a lawsuit Tuesday for allegedly ripping off a painting to promote his clothing line — then launching a Twitter attack against the artist.

Backstreet Boys singer Nick Carter‘s baby brother allegedly ran an image of the painting “Cosmic Lion” on his now-defunct Love Collection website, which sells apparel and jewelry, according to a Manhattan federal lawsuit.

The painting was also prominently featured on the troubled singer’s personal website and on his Instagram page, where it garnered 14,719 likes, the filing says.

Artist Ali Shimhaq, of the Maldives, confronted Carter about the alleged theft on Twitter, prompting a profanity-laced tirade, the suit charges.

“Bro literally get over yourself. I bought the image and I own it,” The “Hard to Love” singer allegedly replied. “F—k off snd srop [sic] clout chasing. Or sue me.”

The performer, who sports a face tattoo of Medusa, claimed the artwork came from Shutterstock and Shutterfly.

After Shimhaq called him a “liar” and an “art stealer,” Carter fired back.

“Literally suck a d—k,” he allegedly replied. “F—off and watch me burn that sh-t in a garbage it was trash anyways.”

Shimhaq contacted Shutterstock and Shutterfly, and they allegedly said they never had the painting in their database nor did they license it to Carter, the suit says.

“This is an example of a celebrity infringing upon another’s artwork for monetary gain, claiming it as his own, removing the artist’s watermark, and defending his actions on social media by saying what he did was OK,” said attorney Richard Liebowitz. “Artists must get paid for their hard work.”

Shimhaq wants Carter to pay up to $25,000 for each unauthorized use of the image. The painting no longer appears on Aaron Carter’s website, and his clothing website has expired.

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Other images of Shimhaq's "Cosmic Lion" used by Carter, according to court papers. Court papers
Court papers
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