Diana Thorneycroft
"Mouse," "Boy," "Dog," "Man," "White Mouse," "Man with Large Nose"
Graphite on paper, 2024-2

These drawings were scheduled to appear in Foul Play, an exhibition by Thorneycroft and Michael Boss to be held in Winnipeg, Manitoba. But when Thorneycroft and Boss were in discussions with Gallery 1C03, a lawyer advised the gallery that it would be liable for copyright infringement. (In Canada, copyright law is even more restrictive than it is in the United States. "Fair play," which is the Canadian equivalent of "fair use," doesn't allow for parody.)

According to Thorneycroft, the works from Foul Play reflect the hypocritical way that society ignores the violence that is often at the heart of child's play. She and Boss ultimately exhibited Foul Play at Winnipeg's SITE gallery. But for fear of legal problems, Thorneycroft removed these drawings of well-known cartoon characters from the show.