Marsha, Remember Form… Copyright Issues Part 3 - Zentangle®

Do you Know what this pretty little Red Square means?

Have you heard about Zentangle®?

I have. I had some questions…

A photo I took of my Christmas Present (the ZT kit)

So I find myself arriving at a place that is a bit more clear, still slightly uneasy, about Copyrights. I still have questions as to how copyrights work in Jewelry designing (my original part 3 topic). But I have stumbled into an area closer to my heart and my work - specifically my drawings and a newly found obsession: Zentangle®


I am almost certain to say that I am not alone in my initial reactions to Zentangle®. Delighted, Interested, Confused, Addicted, still a little confused (I have been drawing patterns for a long time like this! How I am just hearing about this)…


Now to keep this post somewhat short and to the point, I think that with all my looking (links are listed below) around, experimenting with drawings & techniques, I feel confident to say that an actual Zentangle® is done in a short period of time, on a small piece of paper, using a string (in pencil) to begin your design, and by filling in the areas (with a black ink pen) within that string by using patterns and lines with each stroke having a direct intent, then use a pencil to shade in the drawing to make the piece "pop" of the page. The main point is to find relaxation and a state of meditation within those said small drawings - the Zentangles®. 


It is a wonderful way to meditate - really… And very addictive if you are into doodling, drawing, coloring, shading, and the like.

I am no lawyer, law maker, law writer, or professional when it comes to Copyright, Trademark, Patent, etc. But I feel safe again, continuing to draw as I always have done in margins, sketchbooks, napkins, placemats, sugar packets, matchbooks (you get the point right?) and using those items, images, drawings as I want. Here are some pictures of some of my very first clay texture plates (2002) that I carved into clay. 

Marsha Neal Studio Carved Clay Texture Plates

As long as you are not out there trying to re-create what Rick and Maria have created with Zentangle® (they were clever enough to give us parameters, utensils, directions, advice, inspiration, materials - all bundled up in a beautiful green box with a red square on it) then you should feel no animosity towards them for coming up with this wonderful business idea. I thank them for giving me another direction and a purpose (to meditate) through these small drawings.


And as far as I can tell with the coming up with a pattern and naming it - that has got to be for communication purposes. If you were going to teach patterns or reproduce the patterns (in a profitable way) in the method and steps you would probably have to get permission from the Artist or Zentangle® first. It is always best to ask if you are uncertain.


I personally am happy to have a name other than "doodles" to refer to the drawings and patterns that fill my sketchbook and texture plates. And names to be able to call them when I talk to other people interested in drawing like this. 

Marsha Neal Studio Texture Plate and Clay Pendants.

Brings back memories from a business class I took once where they talked about being careful with  branding: Like BandAid® Bandages - there is a brand thing there - the name is BandAid - not the product. Do you ask for a bandage or BandAid®? Do you Zentangle® or Tangle or Draw or Doodle?


Here are some links that I found helpful:
Zentangle's website - legal page.
Zentangle Flickr discussion.
From Sandra's Blog (which has lots of helpful links there).
From Sandy's Blog.
3/5/11 Additon: TanglePatterns.com Copyright 

Join in on the fun! Lots of challenges out there and websites with patterns (I personally had to get some books in hand to be able to sit and obsessively draw out as many as possible to get my head focused).


Want to see some of my tangle drawings? Click HERE.
I would love feedback - what do you think? How do you feel about this? Am I on the right track?


My 2011 Motto: Draw Every Day...

Marsha, Remember Form… Copyright Issues Part 2

First, Thank You for all your comments on my first post about this issue.

Unfortunately these posts are typed out…

We are not sitting having coffee or tea and brownies and talking about this in person, able to express and clarify points that may be misunderstood…

I will be trying to clarify my points as I find the time to write a bit more about it in upcoming posts. Remember, I AM in the midst of copyright infringement cases, so I have to make sure not to open my mouth too much. So these posts take more time than normal to write because I write and edit then re-read, write again (and deal with life in between)…

I also have questions and concerns about what is going on in the industry as a whole - bead and jewelry related.

What is right and wrong. What is acceptable, what isn't. Where do the lines get drawn...

I am learning & really trying to think about things as I get into this, and I want to share with anyone that wants to read about it (or maybe even go have that cup of coffee)…

And since it is Self Portrait Friday, I wanted to talk about my work and my inspirations and touch on why I make the work I do and why I feel I have a fighting chance with my copyright cases.

I thought that since I am constantly behind my iPhone snapping pictures of everything...

My Friday Self Portrait Photograph is appropriately this:

Self Portrait Friday: My iPhone and Me...

I am inspired by nature, by textures, colors, patterns, by fabrics, by architecture, there is so much out there to see if you have the time to look…

Playground equipment rust and wear… So beautiful!

I do not travel about with a sketch book in hand these days to sit and look about and take the time to draw. That is reserved for when I am able to sit and draw and doodle out textures and designs from imagery that I have captured or collected by photographs or fragmented memories of things seen.

I have two little kids (9 months and 2.5 years old) - my hands are occupied by them most of the time (not just holding them, but actually doing stuff with them and for them)...

My hands like to be in the garden, feeling the earth, caring for what grows in it and exploring what depends on it… I find peace out there...

I've got a Bachelor of Science degree in Entomology, concentrating in Wildlife Conservation.

I have a Masters degree in Art: Ceramics.

I like to observe, photograph, to interact, to teach, to explore, to laugh, to get freaked out by a passing insect that surprises me or walking into a spider web - ugh. 

To find inner happiness in the small things.

Heck, I even have a blog dedicated to my garden I enjoy it so much…

So is it any wonder that when we moved into this house five years ago - in the height of my business success, with lots of potential garden areas (there were overgrown ones everywhere), I found inspiration in being outside in nature. One time specifically after encountering earth worms that are freakishly large, wiggly, and plentiful in the garden beds here. 

I'm not into touching slimy things that wriggle all over the place, and move faster when you poke at them: and earth worms fall into that "freak me out" category. 

However, they are cool to look at, and I get a kick out of the way they eek me out. I sometimes wonder what people think as they walk by and see me doing the eww, one just wiggled on me jumping move - you know the one… 

You've probably done it too. 

They fascinate me: the way their bodies move, the way their "skin" is somewhat translucent, somewhat iridescent. And all that other cool stuff: like if you cut them in half, they become 2 (not sure about the technical stuff there), you can see some of their organs looking at them from the outside. Since childhood they have been interesting to me in some manner. I've never met anyone that hasn't had a reaction to earthworms, have you?

So thinking about their appearance of segmented bodies, the way they wriggle, their long, slender body I went into the house and did a few drawings - letting my mind fall into what I had seen and watching the lines appear on the page in front of me…

Soon after, I rolled out a slab of clay and started to carve that drawing into it, and a few hours later, hands numb from carving (I carve all at once for a uniform look), I had created a texture plate full of earth worms (see the bottom of the picture below, that is part of my texture plate)...

When I first started making pendants, I had to figure out how to make them faster to keep cost down. In earth clays, it's not the materials cost that is expensive, it's the time it takes to make something and fire it multiple times…

Carving textures like this allows me to cut many pieces from one slab of clay that I roll out on it (see the square commercially available clay cookie cutters - I use them all the time - as do many other clay artists… LOL). And those many pieces I cut out weren't all identical, but they were in fact pretty similar. You get that right - so I could create a catalog for customers to be able to order something and get what they were asking for, and give them something unique at the same time? 

It was a business move on my part (patting myself on the back for figuring that out - it was a "duh" moment in the studio).

There are many steps that follow in order to get the finished pendant to the level of quality I want my work to be at. I don't like my pieces big and chunky and heavy. Thin, beveled edges, glazed on both sides, clean small holes for stringing - that's what I want. That's how my pieces look.

So now look closely at the picture above...

Can you pick out my pieces and the ones I am calling knock offs?

Don't scroll down yet - it's like seeing the answers on a test. 

I tried to put in extra line spaces to help.

The ones with the Earth Worms texture?

Which - I must say - is a unique texture in itself.

And yes, is copyrighted by Marsha Neal Studio, LLC.

The ones that are not created in my studio are crossed out in the above picture.

Now here is another picture that my friend snapped with her phone in the gift shop in Colorado of a knock off pendant necklace with the Earth Worms Texture pendant.

Ok, wait… This one - it's different right - because someone went in and removed the lines from my drawing… Is it different enough? I would have to argue firmly NO. 

It's still my Earth Worms design - the outline anyway.

And yes - my flower design, cluster spirals, frog eggs, urban grid, and many more...

Why No? 

Well the technical stuff on taking a piece, or a picture of a piece and making a mold or copy can get a little boring (see the beads-of-clay blog if you want to learn technical insights on making clay beads - it is an invaluable resource). 

And I am tempted to actually make molds myself & photograph the steps in detail to give my lawyer even more technical evidence on how it would be done to help our case. Heck, I think it would be funny to do a bead challenge to see how many of my clay friends would want to do it too just to prove the point about the ease of making a mold from someone else's finished piece. 

Something being easy to do does not make it right.

I shouldn't even have to type that...

But just at the surface level of seeing pieces, take a look at this series of pictures for a quick general idea.

Scale is about the same.

Color is similar (again - it's a glaze - not a unique special to me thing - I am not claiming to have made up "green translucent glaze").

And you can see how the texture was removed.

You know it was removed because the actual carving is deeper (higher relief) but the outline is the same.

And if you look at the group shot a few pictures up, there are various sizes, but scale remains the same which means the mold was made from one of my larger pendants.

Oh, the molds that are used - and how they have to botch up a perfectly clean design by making molds from glazed pieces. Ugh - the loss of detail. So not pretty...

Ok, now before you continue to say: Marsha, move on, make new stuff (that is obvious by the way, and will happen as soon as inspiration is let free again and I get enough brain cells built back up after birthing 2 kids)… I can't do everything all at one time and actually have a semblance of a life outside of "beads". Because really, my life does not revolve around making art.

I don't have a point to prove.

I make beads because I like doing it…

I like making them for people to use in their beautiful jewelry designs…

I love the colors and textures of the designs and the glazes…

I am quite fond of their individual unique qualities that each firing offers...

I have to say that I made the decision to hire a lawyer after I got the many (many!) various pieces in hand, and into my studio and the similarities were astounding - definitely my actual designs.

I'm more amazed that they would just make copies, because clay is one of the easiest materials to make things from and make it somewhat unique… I mean - really?!

And it really started to hit me after I had customers come up to me at a show or email me to see if I had earrings that matched the pendant they picked up at a bead shop on vacation "because you do have ceramic pendants too, and this looks like it would match" (hello - that is because it is my design, but not my piece…).

Because over the last 8 years I made sure to make a name for my business within the bead industry by putting a ton of money & time into print advertisements, website design, and redesign, printable catalogs, new stock, new designs (again, my own drawings & texture plates), new glazes, time traveling, away from my husband, missing family events because of selling at shows, establishing relationships with customers, figuring out how to run a business and keep it afloat in a recession, teach people about what I was figuring out through Beads of Clay (our great wonderful family of clay bead makers!), then deal with some major personal losses and changes in the last four years…

I am not just going to sit here and let this just pass me by and lose any rights that I have to something I have created. This is a business. This is not a one of a kind super expensive piece of artwork that is going to hang in a gallery somewhere. 

I make and sell porcelain pendants & beads. Why would someone that doesn't realize the difference pick an $18 piece vs a $2 piece? Why would I let someone come in and just take everything I have worked hard for? I don't even allow people that buy from me at wholesale to sell regular priced individual retail pieces more than $.05 under my retail price to avoid undercutting and competition and the de-valuing of my work. I ran into an issue years back with an online store doing this, and I refused to sell them any more work. The foot went down then too...

I do not dwell on this. I do not spend my days doing nothing but mope about this situation. I have worked hard to distinguish my line of work in today's industry before this current huge boom in technology took over… By creating my own texture plates, documenting dates, copyrighting my designs, made it very easy for me to make the decision to hire my lawyer, and to give her information at the drop of a hat so she can use it to defend my work and have these knock offs removed from the market.

So I just wanted to share a bit more of my journey into understanding copyrighting your work in today's world. It's nuts out there… And unique one of a kind ideas are rare. But there are still rules and regulations to follow, even for something as small as a pendant (those little things add up). And in a world that is so lawsuit happy, you have got to protect yourself and know your rights.

I never thought I would be dealing with something like this in my life. I always think "well, better be safe than sorry and do it right - just in case". And then pray to come out of it with a fair decision and no bad karma… 

It was not me that decided to make a mold of someone's work and have it mass produced and distributed around the world. 

Someone did that to me… 

To my business...

And I am letting my lawyer deal with it…

I'm just backing her up with the details and proof…

And with that being said, I have wasted enough of my evening on thinking about this…

I hope I explained my unique situation well enough to give you better insight and thoughts about making your own work "yours".

Another post will possibly follow in a few weeks.

I will be traveling unexpectedly somewhat last minute to visit my FL family then head strong into the rest of my house/studio organization before the holidays hit.

I want this winter for making all kinds of new stuff…

Endless possibilities are hopefully on my horizon…

Thanks for stopping by!

I appreciate all the feedback...

Marsha, Remember Form… Copyright Issues Part 1

There are days where my professor's voice from college resonates in my head:

"Marsha, I know you really like working with testing glazes, but you need to remember form as well."

I did not realize how much those words would stick with me throughout my life this far… 

I will try to remember my "form" as this person I have become and want to remain. 

And right now, in my life as an "artist", my life work revolves around making clay pendants for Marsha Neal Studio, LLC - my business. The name I chose to use to make my work "professional" and to be able to deal with all the legal stuff & taxes.

There is so much going on right now in the world with technology at our fingertips…

With these blogs, websites, pages, groups, etc as constant interaction and stimulation. 

There is so much to see, so much to be inspired by, so much to learn about.

I am a teacher and scientist at heart. 

I love to learn about things, and share those things.

I get excited about stuff, and can't wait to tell someone about it…

I like to figure things out by working with my hands…

I am going to be writing a bunch of blog posts about my lessons I have learned by working as an artist in the current bead industry. 

There are things I am confused about. 

There are things I am angry about. 

There are things that need to be cleared up - even if it is for my own sanity… 

I need to get some things off my chest. 

They are weighing too heavy upon my head and in my heart...

My heart gets heavy after receiving emails with pictures attached like these…

(Thank You!!! for sending them to me and for getting a piece for me - will be sending to my lawyer!)

My textures - my hand carved textures…

From doodles and drawings in the margins of my notebooks...

My every piece made by hand - here under my vision…

Many designs have been taken and are being reproduced without my knowing it…

Somewhere not like this…

(Below is a piece of scrap drywall where my porcelain clay shards are resting until they are dry enough to go into the kiln for their first firing).

I want to let you know that these posts are not directed at any individual or situation…

Legally I do not want to step on any toes. I do have a copyright lawyer helping me deal with some knock off situations that are currently on the rise. 

Please let her deal with things…

I have to keep reminding myself that - that is why I hired her…

If you see anything suspicious while you are out and about, take pictures and send them to me with information such as store, brand name, price, sku, date, etc. And I will pass it on to my lawyer…

These blog posts will be based on my experiences on decisions I have made. 

Things I thought about, think about, and things that help me to make better decisions when I am in the studio making work. Things that maybe give me a fighting chance at battling the person or company(s) that are having these made and imported…

Things that maybe you need to hear or pass onto someone that needs a good smack upside the head. 

Or someone that you just think needs to read a little about this.

Let's face it:

The bottom line is this…

If you see something and think to yourself or utter to your friend: 

"I could make that"

Then proceed to try to remake it - even something remotely similar… 

STOP YOURSELF RIGHT THERE! 

Really… Think about it…

It's like I hear my husband tell people on phone conversations for work (we both work from home): "Everyone is a genius in hindsight". Meaning you can look at something or situation after it is completed and have all kinds of ideas. But can you come up with something or deal with a situation the right way - the first time, on your own?

You can be inspired by someone's work…

You may even use the same tools & products as someone - there are a lot of things commercially available, and there is often overlap...

But you don't make the same something as someone else - especially not someone's original design!

As I can I will post more about my cases if I am allowed…

Let me say for now, that Marsha Neal Studio, LLC pendants can be found through bead shops listed on my website. 

If you see a piece with my design on it, and it's not in my retail price range ($10, $14, $20), then it is either:

1. A discontinued actual item from an online retailer (such as ArtBeads.com, FusionBeads.com, etc)

or

2. A knock off

I want to find out who is having these made...

And yes - I am going to let go of "form" for a moment…

I need to let this out:

 

Mr. Whomever you are…

You are not only hurting me on an emotional level,

You are destroying a business I have worked SO hard to build up…

And the jewelry designers and bead shops that I have worked hard with since I first started making pieces… you are hurting them by making cheap crap that people can't tell that it is not mine until it is in their hand and they see the inferior quality. Or selling to those that do not know better…

You deflate me and my feelings of self worth…

You are making me fight every bit harder to prove to the people in my life that depend on an income from me that I can in fact can show an income.

You have crossed the line. You have messed with the wrong woman and her lawyer…

And let my situation be a lesson to those of you out there.

Don't rip off other people's designs, no matter how "easy" it may seem to make…

Try your best at making something your own, even if it is using something old or a borrowed technique…

Your style and design will shine through…

If you think your work is looking too much like someone else's then push yourself harder to take it to the next level…

And talk to each other…

Critique each others work…

Ask questions - think about the answers…

Thanks for letting me rant a bit.

I will be posting more about these issues - not related to my specific cases until my lawyer says ok, but to issues that seem to touch on the "gray area" a lot...