Legal Information
fnnch Wants SF to Decriminalize Stickers and Posters
Street Artist 'Sign-Bombs' Downtown Neighborhoods With 450 'Honey Bears'
Mon. January 29, 2018, 4:34pm
by Nathan Falstreau for hoodline
Street art is part of San Francisco's landscape, but one local artist recently installed hundreds of pieces of his work to spark a conversation about using public spaces as a canvas for self-expression.
Over the weekend, fnnch [Stencil Archive album], best known for his depictions of honey bears, ladybugs, seashells, flamingos and turtles, fastened 450 pieces to utility poles between Market and Harrison…
Read moreComing Soon: Shepard Fairey's New LA Show and Hulu Doc
After ‘Hope,’ and Lawsuit, Shepard Fairey Tries Damage Control
By JORI FINKELNOV. 3, 2017 (LINK)
LOS ANGELES — By just about any measure, it’s been a long time since the street artist Shepard Fairey managed to capture the optimism of Barack Obama’s candidacy in his “Hope” poster, the stylized portrait in red, white and blue tones that easily ranks as the most famous, also ubiquitous, artwork of 2008.
Mr. Fairey’s oldest daughter, then 2 years old, is now almost a teenager. The “Hope” image became the subject of a copyright infringement lawsuit by The Associated Press that was both expensive and embarrassing for the artist. Mr. Fairey, who is 47, has since gone on to create art for activist movements like Occupy Wall Street, Black Lives Matter and the Women’s March.
And now “Damaged” — his biggest gallery show yet, with about 200 new paintings…
Read moreStreet Artists Threaten McDonald’s with Lawsuit
Six Street Artists Threaten McDonald’s with Copyright Infringement Lawsuit
ARTSY EDITORIAL
BY ANNA LOUIE SUSSMAN
APR 19TH, 2017
In another chapter of 2017’s incredible streak of “multinational corporation tries to appeal to the kids; mayhem ensues” episodes, McDonald’s stands accused of copyright infringement and false endorsement for using the work of New York City graffiti artists in a promotional video entitled “McDonald’s Presents the Vibe of Bushwick NY.”
On Wednesday, lawyers representing six street artists sent a letter to the burger chain threatening legal action and seeking “compensation for damages to their work and reputation, as well as profits derived from McDonald’s unauthorized use of their artwork,” according to a statement released by their lawyer Andrew Gerber of Kushnirsky Gerber PLLC.
The…
Read more117 Million Americans in Face-Recognition Databases
African Americans are more likely to be targeted by face recognition software
By Sidney Fussell, Fushion.net
On Tuesday, a 150-page report released by Georgetown University’s Center for Privacy and Technology found that an astounding 117 million Americans, nearly half of all adults in the country, have their images stored in face-recognition databases searchable by federal, state, and local authorities. The databases are compiled primarily from images like mugshots, driver’s license photos, passports and visa pictures. Georgetown found that 1 in 4 police departments use face recognition databases, more than 4,000 total departments. The FBI’s database, many times larger than those of local police departments, is also sourced largely from non-criminal images, meaning that inclusion in the face recognition database (unlike fingerprint and DNA databases) isn’t reserved for…
Copyright war: Street artists accuse big corporations of stealing their artworks
Copyright war: Street artists accuse big corporations of stealing their artworks
The family of the deceased artist Dash Snow have accused McDonald's of stealing Snow’s graffiti signature to decorate the walls of hundreds of their restaurants – and his case is not the only one
Enrico Bonadio Monday 17 October 2016 for the Independent UK
The family of late street artist Dash Snow say McDonald's stole his graffiti signature and put it on the walls of their restaurants
Fast food giant McDonald’s has its own, very recognisable logo, but it may soon need to defend itself against a copyright lawsuit for allegedly appropriating someone else’s, in this instance the stylised name of a street artist.
The family of the deceased artist Dash Snow recently brought the case to a Californian court. Also…
Read moreJustin Giarla flees SF, but not lawsuit
This story, where a gallery owner allegedly doesn't pay artists, is a good addition to the Stencil Archive legal feed. Before I saw this Vandalog post (with links to statements made) pop up on my social media streams, I overheard a reporter ask Shepard Fairey about it while I was watching his mural go up in Hayes Valley. Fairey replied, on the record, that he had heard about Justin Giarla's plight. "He owes me money too, but I don't really need it," Fairey said. "What makes me sad is all the money he owes to the artists that really need it." A few days later, a link showed up with more of the story, including past and future litigation over money owed to artists from Giarla's various galleries. Moral of the story: ARTIST BEWARE!
Justin Giarla closes galleries, moves to Portland, allegedly screws over his artists
by RJ…
Broken Windows Policing Doesn't Work
'Broken windows' policing doesn’t bring down felonies, study says
New York's police department believes that enforcing laws against petty crime helps with felony deterrence, but many departments are shifting away from this model.
By Deepti Hajela, Associated Press JUNE 23, 2016
Read the NY OIG report (PDF)
NEW YORK — A data analysis found no link between enforcement of low-level quality-of-life crimes and the felony crime rate, the office charged with overseeing New York City's police department said Wednesday.
The report took pains to make clear it was not commenting on the New York Police Department's overall "broken windows" policing approach, but critics of the policy said the…
Read moreTag a US Nat. Park, Redditors Will Find You
Graffiti artist banned from 20% of US after Reddit users' investigation
Casey Nocket banned from all US national parks and sentenced to 200 hours of community service after users on Reddit tracked her down through social media
The Guardian UK
Tuesday 21 June 2016 18.03 EDT Last modified on Wednesday 22 June 2016 17.00 EDT
A graffiti artist has been banned from all national parks and other federally administered land – that’s more than 20% of the US – for vandalism after Reddit users tracked her down on social media.
Casey Nocket was also sentenced to 200 hours of community service and a fine for drawing faces in acrylic paint in at least six national parks: Death Valley, Colorado National Monument, Canyonlands, Zion and Crater Lake.
Under each picture she left her tag “Creepytings”, which was also the name…
Read moreRime v Scott: Arguing Graffiti Cannot be Protected
Graffiti Cannot be Copyright Protected, Claims Moschino, Jeremy Scott
(originally posted on The Fashion Law)
The latest update in the Rime vs. Jeremy Scott and Moschino graffiti copying case: The creative director and the Italian design house filed to have the Brooklyn-based graffiti artist’s case dismissed, arguing that he does not have standing to bring claims of copyright infringement because the work was an act of vandalism and should not be protected by law.
In a motion for summary judgment filed on Monday, Moschino and Jeremy Scott asked the court to dismiss the case because the artist, whose name is Joseph Tierney, is an "unabashed…
Read moreA Lawyer Talks about Copyrights in Street Art
6 Things You Must Know About Copyrights in Street Art
Megan Ralstin for Art Law Journal
Artist’s rights in their street art, whether commissioned or guerrilla, has been in the news with some frequency lately, largely due to suits against American Eagle and Terry Gilliam. The slippery nature of copyright law has left many wondering where to draw the line between taking a photograph with street art in the background and taking a photo that infringes on a copyright. Unfortunately, there are no easy answers. As we have pointed out before, artwork used without permission may not be considered an infringement. Rather, unauthorized use exists on a spectrum with clear infringement on one end and fair use on the other.
Miami’s Wynwood district has become a hotspot for street art. Recently, American Eagle used murals from one of Miami’s most well-known street artists, AholSniffsGlue, in its latest…
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