The plans also include an archaeological investigation of the Central Police Station and will be carried out before some of the less important structures are razed to make room for Herzog & de Meuron’s cube-styled museum. It was evident during the tour that many of the original furnishings of the jail complex had already been removed, though the bare bunks were still standing in gloomy formation in the cell block, complete with peeling yellow paint and cautionary signs still warning inmates to roll up their bedding before exercising in the delightfully tree-shaded prison yard.

Via Artinfo.

Our good friend, Jonathan Bailey, over at his PlagiarismToday blog, gives us three solid reasons. However, I do disagree with his conclusion:

That being said, you probably shouldn’t bother registering your work unless you are ready to sue. You might never need to and probably won’t, but much like carrying a loaded weapon (going back to that analogy once more). If you are going to carry it, you need to be prepared for the possibility you will have to use it. To do so otherwise is simply irresponsible.

Two grave errors with this logic. One, as an artist you never know which image, audio, or text will be a money-maker. Two, you don’t necessarily have to be willing to use the gun if you carry it. The mere sight and possibility of it being used is threat enough, just like a copyright registration or the registration number.

Okwui Enwezor, former poet and dean of the San Francisco Art Institute, calls out the hypocrisy and lameness of art world protests and petitions. But what, exactly, is he doing that’s so different and effective?

Good news regarding the disturbing allegations of Urban Outfitters infringing a designer’s copyright. According to NBC Chicago, Urban Outfitters has been shamed into removing jewelry from its website and line.

According to Tumblr’s fashion director Richard Tong, Urban Outfitters began the process of reaching out to [designer, Stevie] Koerner on Thursday to remove the jewelry line from its site and it was gone by Friday morning.

Of interest of course is whether or not one can copyright pendants in the shape of the fifty US states. They do have a heart-shaped puncture through them, indicating the capital of the state, so this may help. Regardless, this incident serves as a gentle reminder to the free-culture party that theft of copyrighted works — for commercial or non-commercial reasons — cuts both ways. Kudos to Koerner!

What do you think?

Thanks to our good friend and former student, Amanda Sitzer, for sending this story along.

According to the WSJ, as the domestication and commercialization of graffiti increases so does its criminalization.

Law-enforcement officials around the country are prosecuting graffiti artists with harsher sentences than ever, pushing for felony charges, real prison time and restitution payments as they seek to wipe graffiti from the streets. At the same time, the art world and corporations are embracing the form like never before.

Russia has banned loans to U.S. museums in retaliation for a U.S. district court ruling mandating that Russia return a trove of religious books and manuscripts to the Jewish group Chabad. According to the Los Angeles Times, “[t]he Russian cultural ban already has aborted one U.S. museum exhibition, forced the indefinite postponement of another, and could prevent LACMA from showing 38 artworks in a major exhibition on Islamic art set to open June 5.” The ban has also affected other major cultural institutions such as The Metropolitan Museum and The J. Paul Getty Museum.

U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Eddie Harrison/Released

Oddly enough, in last Monday’s Art & Law Residency seminar we were  discussing Disney’s application to the USPTO to register “SEAL Team 6” as a federal trademark and whether or not the US Navy would have any issue with that or whether the US Navy should own the trademark outright.

Sure enough, that’s just what has happened.

Fox News reports today that on May 13, the US Navy has filed “two applications of its own. The Navy’s competing applications sought trademark status for ‘SEAL Team’ posters and clothing, as well as ‘Navy SEAL’ goods and services, identifying the Navy squad as an organization that ‘develops and executes military missions involving special operations strategy, doctrine and tactics.'”

So who would win? Well, the SEALs of course. But who would win the trademark battle? It’s hard to say. It could be Disney if we base the issue on who filed first. It could be the US Navy if the issue is framed around who was actually providing services and products first. They could also enter into an agreement where each stays within their respective categories: military interventions and the other into entertainment.

Hard to say, but we believe they’ll settle this amicably, or at least Disney will. They stand to lose too much.

UPDATE: May 26, 2011

We were right. Disney has withdrawn its “SEAL Team 6” trademark applications.