Original sports related artwork

[RandomArtist]

I'm an artist & I have an idea I'm working on to create a set of original sports related art using the colors of sports teams & the name of the city/school/team relating to those colors. I'm not talking about using any logos or already existing artwork; just the colors & words, in my own original styles of painting. An example could be a black & yellow/gold based painting with the words "Pittsburgh" "Steelers" or both incorporated in it. Another could be orange & blue painting with "Florida" "Gators" or both in it. Again it would not include any already existing logos or images. This would ideally open up to all sports, not just football or professional sports. If someone wanted the same thing done to hang in their kids room because they are on their grade schools baseball team, I'd make it for them.

Would the creation of such original artwork for sale to the public cause any copyright or trademark issues? It's not like in making jerseys or sports related equipment; nor would I be claiming to have created or own such team names used in the works. These are just works of art for the enjoyment & use of the buyers in their homes/offices/whatever.

Since it's not using already existing images or any direct copying of items like Andy Warhol's Campbell's soup can paintings (which share copyrights between the Warhol estate & Campbell's because of the nature of those works) would, being an original work of art; the copyrights solely belong to me as the original artist? I could then create prints of the works of art if & whenever I want if people want posters of the artwork instead of the original works due to cost or personal choice.

Once I have some examples created I was going to contact a local IP lawyer to get some more specific clarification & determination given my specific circumstances.

Any insight is appreciated.

 

[FlyingRon]

The words can be trademarks. Perhaps not the city, but the team names are almost certainly are and the NFL, their teams, and the players association (all who have their thumb in the merchandising pie) are pretty vehement about defending those marks.

 

[quincy]

I'm an artist & I have an idea I'm working on to create a set of original sports related art using the colors of sports teams & the name of the city/school/team relating to those colors. I'm not talking about using any logos or already existing artwork; just the colors & words, in my own original styles of painting. An example could be a black & yellow/gold based painting with the words "Pittsburgh" "Steelers" or both incorporated in it. Another could be orange & blue painting with "Florida" "Gators" or both in it. Again it would not include any already existing logos or images. This would ideally open up to all sports, not just football or professional sports. If someone wanted the same thing done to hang in their kids room because they are on their grade schools baseball team, I'd make it for them.

Would the creation of such original artwork for sale to the public cause any copyright or trademark issues? It's not like in making jerseys or sports related equipment; nor would I be claiming to have created or own such team names used in the works. These are just works of art for the enjoyment & use of the buyers in their homes/offices/whatever.

Since it's not using already existing images or any direct copying of items like Andy Warhol's Campbell's soup can paintings (which share copyrights between the Warhol estate & Campbell's because of the nature of those works) would, being an original work of art; the copyrights solely belong to me as the original artist? I could then create prints of the works of art if & whenever I want if people want posters of the artwork instead of the original works due to cost or personal choice.

Once I have some examples created I was going to contact a local IP lawyer to get some more specific clarification & determination given my specific circumstances.

Any insight is appreciated.

You have to look at the overall impression a consumer would get when viewing your artwork.

If your artwork is using the trademarks of sports teams (their names, colors, logos, nicknames, slogans, single letters like University of Michigan's block "M," etc), and consumers connect in their minds your artwork with the trademark holder's brand or image, you can find yourself the recipient of a cease and desist letter and/or the defendant in an infringement action (depending on how zealously the trademark holder wants to pursue you).

You are also not able to use in your artwork the name, image or likeness of any of the players without their permission. This can infringe on their publicity rights.

If the trademarks are incidental to a work of art (e.g., in the background of the photo or a painting of a street scene, a Starbucks and its logo is captured), there is less likelihood a consumer would be confused about the art's origin (i.e., they would not think it was trading off the name or reputation of Starbucks). If the trademark is the focus of the artwork (e.g., just the Starbucks logo is photographed or painted), your work would more than likely be found infringing (and, again, trademarks protect not only names and logos but colors, slogans and so on).

Whenever you intend to profit off the rights-protected works of others or off rights-protected people, in other words, you need to seek out their written permission (usually in the form of a license) or you risk a legal action being taken against you. Commercial uses are especially risky.

Andy Warhol's paintings of the Campbell's soup can, as a note, infringed on Campbell's trademark. The reason Andy Warhol was not sued by Campbell's was that Campbell's appreciated his artwork and purchased Warhol's works for their corporate offices.

You can go to the websites of the teams whose trademarks you wish to capture on canvas and check out their legal page. Most will list what is protected and how to obtain a license to use the marks. But you are also very smart to have your artwork looked at by an IP attorney in your area prior to marketing the paintings. Your local attorney can provide you with a better assessment based on a personal review of your specific works.

Good luck with your art career.

 

[FlyingRon]

It's not insurmountable. Our corporate communications guy was a real good artist and did some paintings of some Washington Redskins and got permission (even enthusiastic) from the team/players.
However if you do something that is going to cut into their revenue, expect that they will want money or otherwise be disinterested in helping you.

 

[quincy]

It's not insurmountable. Our corporate communications guy was a real good artist and did some paintings of some Washington Redskins and got permission (even enthusiastic) from the team/players.
However if you do something that is going to cut into their revenue, expect that they will want money or otherwise be disinterested in helping you.

It is the specific artist who wants to create the artwork that can be a deciding factor in how willing an organization is to grant permission or a license to use their trademarks. Good art and good artists tend to be appreciated. When the brand's image is on display, the unauthorized creation and marketing of an original painting by a great artist will not harm the reputation of the brand the way some of the unauthorized, cheap, mass-produced tee-shirts can.

But getting permission in advance is really important for both the great artist and the tee-shirt maker when dealing with the trademarks of sports teams. They are very protective of their rights and regularly confiscate and destroy infringing works. A good artist puts too much thought and effort into creating a work to want that to happen.