Piracy, counterfeiting and illicit reproductions are commonplace today. From a creator's point of view, this shameless appropriation of the fruit of a certain talent and a lot of work is experienced emotionally as a permanent burglary. From an economic point of view, counterfeiting is a global scourge, commonly estimated at 500 billion dollars, including 60 billion euros for Europe. Intellectual property is protected worldwide by the Berne Convention. Offenders are liable to financial and criminal penalties.

In 2007, following my complaint, the Commercial Court of Paris condemned a large German manufacturer and two French supermarket chains for distributing counterfeit copies of my Balthazar chandelier. In recent years, another of my creations, the Aviaries, has aroused a regrettable enthusiasm on the part of copiers of all kinds. I created the first Volière around the year 2000, but did not start selling them until 2006, because it was only then that I found the mesh that could produce the visual effect I had in mind. Neither a birdcage nor a conventional lampshade, the Volieres are unlike anything that came before them. They have become iconic and are now sold in nearly 40 countries. The Volieres are made by hand, and are too often considered a ready-made way to make a living for anyone who wants to copy them. Some people go so far as to make people believe (or believe themselves) that they have invented something by copying them in their own way. In order to explain to those who do not spontaneously understand that my Volieres are not in the public domain, I may have to use the talents of my lawyers. It then becomes very clear that the Aviaries did not originate by themselves and that distributing counterfeits is liable to serious legal sanctions. It is regrettable to have to come to this, but I am told that it is the price of success.

Thank you to all those who are committed to defending creators.

Mathieu Challières