Who is laughing now? Not Banksy, who recently lost the trademark over his iconic monkey artwork, Laugh Now. It is the second trademark that he has lost in less than 10 months.

The European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) declared that Banksy’s trademark claims were “inconsistent with honest practices” because they were not created “in order to create or maintain a share of the market by commercialising goods, but only to circumvent the law”.

The EUIPO pointed out that in his 2005 book Wall and Piece, Banksy wrote that “copyright is for losers”. The artist had also encouraged the public to download high-resolution images of his art off his website – although Banksy intended this for “amusement and activism”, not for profit.

Banksy’s authentication body Pest Control first filed an EU trademark for the Laugh Now monkey in November 2018. It was successfully registered in June 2019. In November that year, however, the greeting card company Full Colour Black opposed the trademark, claiming it was “filed in bad faith” and “non-distinctive”. Since then, Full Colour Black has been contesting Banksy’s trademark rights to his name and images.

Banksy lost his first trademark battle in September 2020 over Love Is In The Air (Flower Thrower).

What is a trademark and how does it work?

Registered trademarks protect the name, slogan or logo of a brand or business. A trademark has to be unique and you have to use it regularly for it to be valid – but once it is protected, you can legally prevent others from using or copying your trademark.

Without a trademark, Banksy cannot stop big companies and galleries from using his name or artworks on their unofficial merchandising and products.

Who is Full Colour Black?

Full Colour Black is a UK-based greeting cards company specialising in street art, particularly works by Banksy. Many of their bestselling cards feature murals by Banksy, or reworked versions of iconic Banksys – such as Placard Rat with a sign that says “Go back to bed” instead of the original message, “Welcome to hell”, or a Laugh Now monkey carrying a board that says “Binge drinking is fun”, instead of “Laugh now but one day we’ll be in charge”.

Was Banksy’s Gross Domestic Product a real shop?

Banksy’s merchandising pop-up shop Gross Domestic Product launched in Croydon, South London, in October 2019 – but never opened its doors to customers, only selling products online through its website.

In a statement on Instagram, Banksy revealed that “This shop has come about as a result of legal action. A greeting cards company are trying to seize legal custody of the name Banksy from the artist, who has been advised the best way to prevent this is to sell his own range of branded merchandise.”

But the plan backfired. In May 2021, the EUIPO ruled that Banksy’s trademark registrations “were not intended to be used” for his own merchandising and that he had “concocted sham efforts to try and mislead the EUIPO into believing that there was such an intent”.

Is Banksy’s street art copyrighted?

Even though Banksy’s street art is created in public spaces and available for everyone to enjoy, he owns the copyright to these works: unlike registered trademarks, all artists automatically own the copyright to the work they’ve created, throughout their lifetime and up to 70 years after their death (under UK law). Copyright allows artists to claim royalties or have a say over how their work is used.

But if Banksy ever needed to enforce his copyright, he or Pest Control would have to reveal his real identity in order to prove he is the “unquestionable owner” of his works.

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The elusive anonymous artist Banksy, who generally works in the street, showed no exception in following official advice to stay at home and work from home. His new artwork was made in his bathroom and displays his trademark stencilled rats running around the room.

The photo was unveiled this week on his personal website and Instagram account with the caption «My wife hates when I work from home». The Instagram post featuring five different photos has garnered more than 2 million likes in just a few days.

Banksy’s new artwork shows his bathroom infested with nine playful rats squeezing a tube of toothpaste, swinging from light chords, knocking the mirror, unravelling toilet rolls and urinating on the toilet seat – a grotty comment on life in lockdown.

The artwork is Banksy’s latest piece since his Valentine’s Day mural in Bristol in February, which was later vandalised. It depicted a young girl firing a slingshot of red flowers.

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Entitled «The Beauty of Liberty and Equality», the mural celebrates the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment which gave the women the right to vote. Its design fuses both artists’ distinctive styles and incorporates images that evokes the history of women’s rights in the USA. It depicts Wonder Woman breaking a chain with her bare hands painted by Shepard Fairey. Underneath the famous heroine, Sandra Chevrier painted a massive portrait of a woman who represents every woman. This figure is surrounded by multiple messages and images referencing women’s strength and history. Painted in only five days, Fairey and Chevrier’s common piece now stands as the largest mural ever painted in Austin, Texas.

Sandra Chevrier is a Canadian self-taught pop urban artist who is known for her captivating portraits of women from the Cages series. Chevrier’s portraits are literally torn between the iconography of comic books heroines and the harsher underlying tragedy of oppressed female identity. Her subjects denounce the role given to women in a male-dominated world.

Shepard Fairey is an internationally acclaimed street artist and graphic designer who has painted more than 100 large-scale murals across the world. He is also famous for his activist and humanitarian concerns with the creation, among others of the creation of the clothing producing company Obey well known for incorporating provocative political messages.

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‘PAG’ (Premio Antonio Giordano) is an urban art festival aimed at promoting all forms of visual arts (painting, sculpture, photography, architecture). Focusing on contemporary art languages, PAG continues the research and experimentation activities carried out by the artist Antonio Giordano, a multifaceted exponent of transavantgarde movement (painter, sculptor and photographer) dead in 2013. PAG is promotion and divulgation of visual art in the urban space, considered as the privileged place for the discussion and the knowledge exchange.

PAG selects artists from the urban art scene at national and international levels. The event is organized by “ACAG” (Associazione Culturale Antonio Giordano), under the support of town council of Santa Croce di Magliano (Italy); the selection of most suitable spaces (such as abandoned buildings and the most significant places of urban centre) and the art direction are managed by ACAG; special attention is paid to the selection of artists, namely of their artistic language, differing in terms of culture and formation, but also in terms of painting technique. The choice is based on the most suitable artistic language for the character of places where the intervention is carried out.

This third edition will host five artists (Francisco Bosoletti, Camilla Falsini, Giulio Vesprini, Guerrilla Spam and Zed1) who will make artworks on the walls of private and public buildings; the artists will follow one another, starting from June 25 until the end of July. The event will see the realization of urban art interventions on five walls, but also on small facades and doors and a workshop of poster art, open to students, artists and illustrators.

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Her print features the portrait of Frida Kahlo with a colorfulbackground with rays and a golden halo.

PRINT TYPE: Hahnemuhle Photorag giclée print.

PAPER: Fine art paper (308 g.s.m)

EDITION: Limited to 25 copies! Prints are numbered and signed.

DIMENSIONS: 30 x 30cm with 2cm inside white border.For larger print, please contact the artist.

DATE OF RELEASE: October2016

To order your print, go tohttp://zabou.me/shop/giclee-print-frida/

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For the third edition of North West Walls, six massive talents were present: Bezt from Etam Cru (Poland), Alexandre Orion (Brasil), Low Bros (Germany), Nosego (USA), Case Ma’claim (Germany) and Deih (Spain).

The artists’ work can be admired long after the festival period is over since the it is a permanent installation – at least until the next edition!

Here are the pictures of North West Walls 2016:

For more information about the project curated byArne Quinze, check out North West Walls site: northwestwalls.be

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Why did you choose the name ‘Don Mateo’? Is there a story linked to this name?
I lived in Spain in 2006. The name Don Mateo is a reference to this period of my life.

What was your first experience with street art? What did you paint?
The very first time I painted something in the street happened when I was 12. I tagged a golden ‘fuck’ on my teacher’s car. That was stupid of me. Some years later, I carried out projects connected to the city. I remember painting a tank pink the day Mister Sarkozy became the new French President.

Why did you choose painting in the streets? How could you define your connection to the city?
I have been painting for 20 years now, but painting in the streets is for me a perfect balance. I feel no pressure, it’s a space of total freedom. Also, I have been hanging out in the streets since I am 14, this is where I have spent most of my time, with my friends.

What inspires you when you create?
Nothing special to be honest. Art is a means of expression, I need it.

We can notice that most of your works focus on female characters (women and little girls) What is the reason for that?
I find poetry, sweetness and strength in women. Unfortunately, I can’t find those in men. Since time immemorial, painters have been inspired by women, for example Ingres, Manet… Surprisingly, I focus on male characters when I have dark thoughts, but in general those are ideas I quickly get rid of.

In 2013 you made a collage ‘Fuck You’ in Lyon. To whom is it addressed?
I painted a character giving a finger on a wall. I liked the contrast between the grace of the character and the rudeness of the finger. The gesture is just a symbol to express angriness and rebellion.

What are your future projects in years to come?
Paint again and again.

To finish, we heard the police arrested the JAB collective in Lyon (April 26), with more than a million euros of damage to pay according to French media. What is your reaction to this?
I don’t react to this…. I am not interested in this. This kept the local press busy for a couple of days. I would rather read articles on good local artists but never mind…

Don Mateo,Submit or Fight, in Lyon (2015)

Don Mateo,Athena, in Lyon (2016)

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PROJECT:  In the small Italian town of Bonito the first edition of Impronte is currently taking place it is dedicated to street art and inspired by Salvatore Ferragamo, the famous designer and craftsman born in Bonito in 1898. 

Participating artists are: Tellas, Giulio Vesprini, Millo, Milu Correc and Gola. 

The idea of Impronte stems from the desire to pay homage to Salvatore Ferragamo, a designer from Bonito. It is celebrating the creativity that has marked his career and his many transversal projects which encompassed fashion, design and art. The event itself has two different parts. During the first part it is about street art and the second part is where design is the main focus.

The first part of Impronte is about the interventions by five different international artists. The artists have been chosen because of the shapes, the patents and the materials which portrayed Ferragamo’s work over the years.  All five artists have their own unique style for which they are known for…..Giulio Vesprini is known for geometries and the wise dosage of colors.

During the second part it is where design will be protagonist with an interesting exhibition. It will expose five historical shoes from Museo Salvatore Ferragamo in Florence. The exhibition will take place in the spaces of the Convento Francescano di Bonito and exposed together with the artworks created by the artists.

HIS IDEA: The shoe that inspired him is “DIVA 1941”

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Spray painted using hand cut stencils on Lambeth cartridge paper.
59 x 84 cm
AVAILABILITY LIMITED to ONLY 10 per piece.
All prints are signed and embossed.

ON SALE FRIDAY 6pm GMT (London).
Go to www.trusticon.co.uk/shopmenu.html

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Nychos is a street artist, illustrator and painter whose signature style blends themes of morbid corporeality with a colorful, outlandish aesthetic. Inspired by comics, heavy metal, graffiti and his upbringing in a traditional Viennese hunting family, his work reveals the skeletal and internal structure of cartoon-like characters. With impeccable attention to detail, Nychos implements methods of “dissection, cross-section, meltdown and translucence” to juxtapose the beauty and grotesque nature of the body.

For IKON, Nychos created a portrait series of celebrities and fictional characters whose images have been burned into our minds and we’ve grown accustomed to perceiving superficially. With a particular focus on icons from the 1980s, this new body of work shows the profound influence that media had on the artist during his formative years. By dismantling their anatomy he explores the humanity that exists underneath the mask of celebrity and confronts viewers with the core elements we all have in common: flesh and bones.

This new series of work explores the evolution of pop culture while also commenting on developments that have come to plague society over recent decades. Visitors will be confronted with images such as a rubber ducky liquefying into polluted water, a Barbie doll whose face has melted into a cancerous drip and other socio-ecological crises.

The above text was sourced from the Gallery’s site.

For more on Nychos:

• nychos.tumblr.com
• www.rabbiteyemovement.at
• instagram.com/nychos
• facebook.com/Deinonychos

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The mural represents two policemen beating up Marianne, the national symbol of the French Republic. The mural is a nod to the recent demonstrations against 49.3, also known as El Khomri Law (named after French Labour Minister) which aims at implementing new protections for French businesses and workers. Goin’s mural denounces the clashes between the police and the young demonstrators which recently occurred in France

It also targets the French government. According to the artist, French freedom is gradually being taken away from the people. French government qualified the painting as a ‘shameful mural’. The artist answered on his facebook page with a quotation from the English writer George Orwell: “If liberty means anything at all it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.”

The artist is known for being socially engaged. He is currently contributing to a collective exhibition ‘L’Art Engagé’ (Engaged Art) along with Isaac Cordal and well-known Shepard Fairey in Bayonne, France.

Discover more about Goin on:

• www.goinart.net
• facebook.com/goinart.net

The post Goin’s polemical mural in Grenoble, France appeared first on Street Art Bio.

In solidarity with Parisians and all of humanity after the Paris attacks, they painted ‘Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité’ (Liberty, Equality, Fraternity) which is the national motto of the French Republic.

450 ‘Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité’ screen prints (18 inches by 24 inches, signed and numbered) are available at Galerie Itinerrance in Paris. Plus, a very small portion will be available for purchase onObeyGiant.comin the store. All proceeds will go to benefit SOS RACISM.

Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité piece, was really just about showing my support for Paris and for France after the terror attacks. The French flag was not always seen as a symbol that all French stood behind, kind of like the US flag. But in this moment, nations around the world are supporting France with their recreations of the flag on monuments. I think it’s a nice symbol for unity.
It’s time to be united in loving, not divided in fearful. I think the place for a street artist or any artist in this moment is to try to connect on a very human level. I think their creativity brings people together. I’ve always believed in street art because it means that the artist is participating, rather than just passively observing.

Shepard Fairey

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If, like me, you don’t live in the UK or can make it to London, but would love a piece of Otto’s work in your house. Good news! In conjunction with his exhibition, the Chilean artist is releasing his recent “Anonymosh” work, in Camden Town (see below) as a silver and white spray hand finished screen print. Sweet! Want one? Contact the gallery or the artist.

Want to know more about Otto, check out his Street Art Bio

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The amazingAlexandra Henry hasfor the past three and a half years been documenting female graffiti and street artiststo capture their collective voice and experiences within the global street art movement- a place where women have received little recognition for their contributions.

Watch the trailerhere:

Now, with the support of friends and the Kickstarter community, they havethe opportunity to look further into their personal transformations through street art by connecting more deeply with specific characters.Weaving together their stories of art and activism we are creating the first of its kind documentary, dedicated to recognizing the female contingent.

Alexandra needs your help! So get onboard. She is raising funds on Kickstarter! 

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Father Smith, also known as Fighting Father Dave is the only Australian in Holy Orders to have won state and national boxing titles. He’s been fighting the good fight for over two decades; using boxing and martial arts to steer youth away from a life of drugs and crime.

E.L.K and Father Smith actually know each other quite well after recently returning from a mission to Syria called Boxers For Peace, which Cornish said was a life-changing experience. I bet.

This installation is part of a streetart project being launched by the Australian bank, ANZ, on unused walls across Sydney, recognizing local people with inspiring stories to tell. In addition to E.L.K, three other of Australia’s most celebrated street artists Stormie Mills, Adnate, and Kaff-eine will bring to life portraits of those who have made strong contributions to their communities. It sure is a great way to connect the Sydney community through street art. Brilliant stuff.

I’m hoping to interview E.L.K soon, so keep an eye out.

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