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WELCOME TO THE EAST FINCHLEY OPEN ARTISTS MARCH NEWSLETTER
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THIS MONTH - Pages from my sketchbook - Can you own a colour? - Ann Froomberg - Claudia's Lockdown Notes - Art and the Olympics - and more
If you are viewing on gmail remember to click 'display images' and 'view entire message' when you reach the bottom.
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Showing now on our website, a new online exhibition
A FAVOURITE PAGE FROM MY SKETCHBOOK
Good art and craft do not just happen. They are part of a process.
Artists research, they experiment, they play, they explore, they reject, they amend, they abandon, they destroy, they manipulate. They ask ‘what if ?’ or ‘how about ?’
They start again.
They use sketchbooks to record, to plan, to propose, to develop, to work out, to design, to illustrate, to think and rethink, to store, to create, to imagine, to capture, to examine ideas, and to sketch just for the pleasure of it.
And at some point each artist says ‘This works’.
This fascinating glimpse into the sketchbooks of our members captures some of this creative journey.
https://www.eastfinchleyopen.org.uk/events/a-favourite-page-from-my-sketchbook.html
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Pantone 18 1663TPX ---- and the Case of the Red Shoes
MIKE COLES writes:-
Can you own a colour?
Well, yes and no – depending on certain conditions and the country you live in.
Individual colours themselves are not protected by copyright but an arrangement of colours, as in a painting is. Most paintings have many colours and a specific ‘arrangement’, so copyright, without any doubts, belongs to the creator of the painting, but what about Mondrian, Josef Albers and others like them who work with simple blocks of colour? – more of that later.
A single colour, however, may be protected as a trademark. In many countries such as the US, Canada, the UK, and EU, it is possible to register a colour, while in others (usually in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East), you can’t - no matter how much you use it there. A single business may have the exclusive right to use a particular colour on specific products or services in the course of trade.
Even where exclusive use is possible, a specific colour is difficult to register as copyright because there is a public interest in not monopolising the availability of colours for use by other users/traders/businesses. However, if the owner can show that as a result of the long-standing and widespread use of the colour on its products and services, customers’ perception of that colour has changed, then it may be possible to trademark it.
However, you can’t trademark a colour abstractly or in isolation from the product. It is always applied to a specific product and your products or services must be associated with the colour by most consumers. The colour must have acquired “secondary meaning” – signifying that consumers immediately associate a particular colour with a particular company.
A colour trademark is a non-conventional trademark where one or more colours are used to perform the trademark function of identifying the commercial origin of a product.
In recent times colours have been increasingly used as trademarks
So what about the Red Shoes?
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Enter Parisian shoe designer Christian Louboutin (born 7th January 1963)
Having learnt his shoe design art under French shoesmith Roger Vivier, (1907-1954) - (the man who invented the stiletto and designed Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation shoes), Louboutin became a household name in the 1990s after Princess Caroline of Monaco fell for one of his first solo shoe creations. Louboutin is known for designing high-heeled shoes for women. These are no ordinary shoes however; over the years they have become a status symbol because of their (originally unique) red outer soles and a (very) hefty price tag.
Celebrities such as Sarah Jessica Parker, Oprah Winfrey, Jane Fonda, Madonna, Tina Turner, Jennifer Lopez and Kylie Minogue are all fans.
Louboutin recognises the fact that his shoes have now become so iconic that his name has become a shorthand for luxury and sexiness, popping up in music, films and books, although, as he says, they are not meant to be comfortable or for day to day use.
The red shoes story begins in 1993. Since the birth of his eponymous shoe label in 1991, Louboutin has been at the forefront of footwear innovation, developing a cult following in a very short time. And the story of how in 1993 the designer launched these famed red soles is a popular one. Spotting a black mark on the sole of a shoe he was inspecting he grabbed his assistants red nail varnish and applied it to the sole.
"I took her nail polish and I gave it a try saying that I wanted to erase that big black mark that was on the sole. By erasing this black trace, the red colour then appeared. (unsurprisingly) I wanted a red where there was no orange, no pink, no purple ... Really the idea of Chinese or Japanese lacquer: pure red. A red also inspired by pop art, a cultural movement of the 1960s and embodied in particular by the American artist Andy Warhol”. (perhaps his quote has lost something in translation)
He liked the red soled effect and, before long, it became the look that everyone wanted. Following the growing reputation of Christian Louboutin shoes as a fashion statement, other shoemakers were inspired by the design of an outer sole in a particular shade of red.
There are a number of systems for classifying colours. One of best known is Pantone which registers thousands of very technically precise colours which are universally recognised for use in printing, design and manufacture. Louboutin’s colour was Pantone 18-1663TPX, with the everyday name of Chinese Red.
In May 2012, spotting a trend, Dutch high street shoe chain Van Haren started producing very much cheaper red soled shoes of their own. So began the long legal battle to get control of Pantone 18 1663TPX. In response to Van Haren, Louboutin initiated various trademark infringement suits around the world, and different defences were raised by the alleged infringers. And then at some stage the colour of the soles of the shoes became tangled up with the shape of the soles. He maintained that the red soles design element to be his recognisable signature and merited legal protection.
In 2010, the designer was granted a Benelux trademark for Pantone 181663TPX, applied to the sole of a shoe. (the contour of the sole, which he included was not deemed to be part of the trade mark but is intended to show the positioning of the mark)’. In 2013, the registration was amended to only cover ladies high-heeled shoes.
Legal challenges continued and in 2018 the EU courts ruled: -
“doubts as to whether the colour red can perform the essential function of a trademark, that of identifying its proprietor, when that colour is used out of context, that is to say, separately from the shape of a sole.”
In other words, if you saw a coffee mug painted in Pantone 18 1663TPX, you wouldn’t think “Louboutin.” Under the principles of intellectual property law, distinguishing marks cannot be functional beyond their signalling strength, and it’s hard to claim a colour alone signals a brand. The European Court of Justice says Pantone 18 1663TPX is only “Louboutin red” when it’s painted on the sole of a shoe—which is functional. Further, the ECJ notes that it may not be in the public interest to validate such a mark because it’s highly restrictive on other businesses.
In a final ruling by the European Court two years ago all sides claimed victory – at least in Europe.
Louboutin could have exclusive use to Pantone 18 1663TPX, but only on high heeled shoes. Other manufacturers could use close colours, reportedly within 10 Pantone shades of 1663.
You’ve probably got some ‘Loubs’ upstairs but if you don't and wanted some there is a rumour that you can get a basic pair for as little as £350, although most are around £1000. Commissioned pairs, as bought by celebrities are around £5,000 a pair.
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Cadbury’s chocolate has been trying to copyright its unique purple wrapper for decades. In 1995 it was granted protection for “chocolate in bar or tablet form” This ruling was opposed by Nestlé, and a long-running dispute ensued. In 2013, the Court of Appeal held that the mark did not constitute the required “sign” that is “graphically represented”; Nestlé’s opposition was successful. The Court considered that the “predominant colour” wording in the description allowed for “a multitude of different visual forms”, so the application
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"represented multiple signs which were not graphically represented nor described with certainty or precision." Last year Cadburys lost all rights to its purple (Pantone 2685C). Make of that what you will, but you can still go into low cost German supermarket and find suspiciously similar looking chocolate bars that are not Cadburys.
It’s not just chocolate. In January 2003, the Scottish Parliament debated a petition (reference PE512) to refer to the blue in the Scottish Flag as "Pantone 300".
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Back to painting. It’s pretty easy to produce a Mondrian or Albers look-alike painting. If you copied it exactly and tried to sell it as an original (a fake) then that’s fraud and a criminal offence. If you produced a poster ‘in the style of’, you could still be prosecuted, depending on how close it was to an original and whether the artists estate thought it was worthwhile suing. It’s likely that Amazon and others retailers would ban it anyway on copyright grounds. If it was different in colour and composition you would be OK.
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Ladies! (and some men too) protect your Loubs with stick-on red soles!
If you are particularly cheapskate and are not walking on red (sic) carpets all the time you can buy red stick-on sole protectors on E-Bay. You can also glue them on to the bottom of those shoes from Poundstretcher and walk in a strange way!
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MEMBER PROFILE - ANN FROOMBERG
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EFOA member and internationally renowned textile designer Ann Froomberg talks about her journey to the top.
I left art school in 1978, naïve, but determined to give my chosen career everything I had. I took a degree in printed textile design and had developed a passion for pattern and a fascination for designing motifs in repeat.
It took five determined years finally to be able to abandon the part time jobs I had taken to subsidise my designing and devote all my energy to the textile industry. I had a close friendship with a fellow student Jackie Moore, we worked successfully together for several years (although never formed a company), cold calling, knocking on doors, driving my clapped out old mini to see clients in Manchester and collaborating on design projects.
By the mid eighties I had a thriving design business, pre digital design, everything was hand painted. I started working in my living room, then rebuilt a lean-to shed on the back of my garage which then became a dedicated studio. Working from home gave me the best of both worlds, I could be a hands-on mum whilst maintaining my design business. It was a tricky juggling act when my son was little but I loved every second.
Initially I designed for both the fashion fabric industry and home furnishings. They are two very different worlds and I enjoyed the variety. The fashion world is all about being trendy and a style setter, whilst home furnishings require much more skill and design thought. After all, people often abandon a dress after one season whilst you might like to enjoy curtains for many years.
New York has always been a centre of the textile world in the U.S. I made two selling trips to Manhattan in the eighties, literally knocking on doors which was very convenient as, in those days, many of the potential clients would be in one huge building. However, to make a success of trips you need to represent other designers and appear, at least, to be a big studio with a variety of styles. I then decided to allow others to represent me and still do so, successfully.
I used to exhibit at trade shows in London and Paris. I got a huge buzz from the experience as I love meeting people. I remember raising eyebrows as I waddled around on an exhibition stand at Olympia eight months pregnant. It was at this trade show that I met two gentlemen who were to transform my business, Jim Laden and Gary Edwards of Country Casuals. I worked on a freelance basis for Country Casuals for 17 years, collaborating with Gary (who used to live in Muswell Hill) the garment designer. It was the most creative, fruitful and fulfilling working relationship I ever had . I think I created some of my best fashion prints for CC and I regularly saw my designs being worn.
Digital design has transformed the textile design business, particularly fashion prints. My peers with whom I had worked at Country Casuals, Windsmoor, Jaeger had retired, so regretfully I ceased working in the fashion business. Thankfully the furnishing fabric world is more forgiving and all my commercial designing now is with Colwill & Waud Studio who represent me in the U.S. and Europe. We are one of the few remaining design studios who still hand paint, in my opinion infinitely richer than anything that a computer can create.
I feel so so privileged and lucky to have enjoyed a successful career for over 40 years doing something I love. I do not intend to retire although I no longer work full time. I now have time to paint silks and make fused glass pieces which you can see on my page on the EFOA website.
annfroombergdesign.com
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Multi-talented ceramicist Claudia Luque talks about her lockdown experience
Back in the first lockdown in March 2020 I made a series of sculptural ceramics called “A New Beginning “. It consists of 8 pieces made with slabs, I pushed the clay to its limits to get the desired forms, and it is its resilience and malleability that inspired me to create this series. 5 pieces were made in black clay and 3 in stoneware.
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These pieces represent a new stage in my life not just as a ceramicist but also as a person. It is my way to understand the isolation, to STOP and come inside myself, to be reborn, to appreciate my freedom, my life and our beautiful planet and to realise that we are all the same and we need each other.
I would like to share this beautiful experience with you as each single sculptural ceramic I made is unique and has its own meaning.
The lock down, forced me to look deep in to my life and reconnect with who I really am and to realise that we are not alone - we are a “unity” everything we do as individuals affects the rest of us.
We need to work together as one, with respect and love to be able to move forward.
We need to be reborn, to come inside ourselves and look for our light - be happy, be kind and grateful and shine together, because if we shine together the rest of the world will shine with us very soon.
My sculptural ceramics represents exactly that, a beautiful message of love and light that were made to heal myself and the whole humanity.
Here are four of those pieces
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“Unity” a sculptural ceramic made in black stoneware clay 26cm. W x 17 cm H x 17 cm D £400
This piece represents that we are all one.
"Mindfulness “ a sculptural ceramic made in stoneware and decorated with various glazes. 26cm H x19cm W x 17cm D £500
This piece represents the importance of the present moment without judgment but full of depth
“Standing Together “ a sculptural ceramic made in black stoneware clay 16cm H x19cm W x13 cm D £350 This piece represents that we are all in this together and only by working together we are going to move forward.
“Fire” made and fired in Raku W 28cm x H 28cm x D 28cm £800
This piece represents the magic of fire and its transmutation powers.
claudia@prnc.co.uk
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Art used to be an Olympic event
The Olympics weren't always about just sporting excellence. The founder of the modern Games, the Baron Pierre de Coubertin, was enamoured with the idea of the true Olympian being a talented sportsperson and artist. Thanks to him, between 1912 and 1948 medals were given out for sporting-inspired masterpieces of architecture, music, painting, sculpture and literature.
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Medal winner Jean Jacoby’s ‘Corner’, left and ‘Rugby’, right. via Smithsonian.com
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HAVE YOU EVER WANTED TO OWN A VAN GOGH?
Coming up for sale in Paris on 25th March is a Van Gogh painting which has never been exhibited before.
Scène de rue à Montmartre (Paris) depicts the street outside an entertainment complex at the top of the hill. A couple walk past the entrance, framed by green poles, while two very young children play in the street. The picture dates from spring 1887, when Vincent was living with his brother Theo in Rue Lepic, five minutes’ walk away.
The landscape has been in the same family since at least 1920. Although a black-and-white photograph was published in 1972, it has only once been reproduced in colour as a very small image.
It's expected to sell for up to £10,000,000. (information courtesy of Martin Bailey)
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ABOUT EAST FINCHLEY OPEN ARTISTS
Find out about us on our website www.eastfinchleyopen.org.uk
There you will find details of all our current members plus photo's of their work and contact details plus information on recent and upcoming exhibitions
MEMBERSHIP: If you are interested in joining East Finchley Open Artists please contact the Membership Secretary at membership@eastfinchleyopen.org.uk
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