/>We are writing this letter in hopes to remind all our creative friends about
the importance of copyrighting your original work. As an artist, it is likely
you want to protect your rights to discern how, where and if your work will be
used. You want to protect your images from being lifted and used, without credit
of authorship or your permission. But with current the spotlight shining on
street art, don’t take this seemingly obvious right for granted. Not everyone
respects your implied ownership as you do.

For those of you who spend
time in lower Manhattan, or follow Wooster Collective closely, you may have seen
our “eye” stickers or stencils in various locations around New York. They are
something that we hold dear for own artistic purposes. Last July, it came to our
attention that a “reputable” broadcast design group called Brand New School used
our eye images in a job they were hired to do for MTV. Brand New School
photographed a set of our stickers, then digitally manipulated them to slap over
a photo of Carson Daly. This was a street-art-and-graff “inspired” opening
sequence for Carson Daly’s 30th Birthday Bash, a show that aired repeatedly on
MTV

/>Though this may sound like good exposure to some, we found it hugely insulting
and disrespectful that others felt it was their right to decide how our work was
used.

After some thought, we decided to take action. To us, it seemed
like a clear-cut case of copyright infringement based on the fact that we could
clearly prove original authorship. Sadly, our ignorance to the law has cost us
greatly - both financially and emotionally. Though we’re still far from experts
on the subject, we now know that the existence of a registered copyright (prior
to infringement) is a crucial element when confronted with a case such as this.
Overall, while each claim of infringement varies, we discovered one consistent
flaw: the legal system does little to protect small, individual artists. In
short, just because you create something does not make it yours. In addition, to
copyright a design like ours, which we have now done, costs approximately $150
per image (in the U.S.). But, more often than not, it is the small artists who
can’t afford to have every piece of work insured against the possibility of
unauthorized use. It is also financially impossible to effectively take on the
corporate “giants” when an infringement occurs.

We are astounded when
so-called “creative” people appear to take no shame in stealing others’ work. It
is beyond money or apology.

We don’t know what the universal answer
is, but we greatly appreciate all of the amazing creative work that is going up
in the streets all over the world. And we would hate for anyone to be slighted
the respect and credit they deserve for their artistry.

Best
regards,
jet+rubble

So what do you guys think?  Do
Jet+Rubble have a point? Or is all street art “fair game”?  Let us know your
thoughts by emailing us at woostercollective@hotmail.com. In the coming daysm
we’ll post a collection of the responses we get.