Nirvana has been sued by the man photographed as the baby on the band’s Nevermind album cover.
Spencer Elden is the four-month-old baby who was photographed swimming after a dollar bill in a swimming pool. The image became the cover of Nirvana’s album ‘Nevermind.’ However, the now-30-year-old is taking the band to court over the picture, claiming he never signed a release to allow the band to use it. He also claims the image constitutes child pornography.
“The images exposed Spencer’s intimate body part and lasciviously displayed Spencer’s genitals from the time he was an infant to the present day,” according to the legal documents.
The U.S. law typically doesn’t categorize non-sexualized photos of infants as child porn, BBC reports. On the other side of the argument, Elden’s lawyer Robert Y. Lewis claims the dollar bill in the photo could suggest the minor is “like a sex worker.”
Elden alleges his “true identity and legal name are forever tied to the commercial sexual exploitation he experienced as a minor which has been distributed and sold worldwide from the time he was a baby to the present day.”
The legal document states Elden has allegedly suffered and will continue to suffer lifelong damages” as a result of the artwork, including “extreme and permanent emotional distress” as well as “interference with his normal development and educational progress” and “medical and psychological treatment.”
As compensation for the alleged damages, Elden is asking for at least $150,000 from each defendant. Those listed in the lawsuit are Kurt Cobain and his estate managers, Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic. Cobain’s ex-wife Courtney Love and the image’s photographer, Kirk Weddle, are also included in the suit.
