[artinfo] monochrom Assumes Ownership of the "Lord Jim Lodge"

[das ende der nahrungskette (johannes grenzfurthner)]

Vienna (OTS) As announced at the press conference in Berlin's Cafe
Einstein, the Vienna group monochrom has assumed ownership of all
trademark and usage rights of the artist Joerg Schlick's "Lord Jim
Lodge". Schlick, who died in December 2005, developed the brand name
together with Martin Kippenberger, Albert Oehlen and Wolfgang Bauer
during the 1980s. This takeover has far-reaching consequences for
numerous artistic endeavors. In cooperation with the Berlin art
consulting agency Teyssandier-Springer, monochrom has lodged claims
asserting its rights in the affair while simultaneously inviting the
owners of the works in question to negotiate a satisfactory 
out-of-court settlement.

Shortly before the artist's death, monochrom purchased from Joerg
Schlick in a package deal all rights pertaining to intellectual
property, copyright, trademark, and usage in accordance with national
and international regulations.

These include:

- the trademark: "Lord Jim Lodge"
- the trademark logo: "Sonne Busen Hammer" (Sun Breasts Hammer)
- the trademark slogan: "Keiner hilft Keinem" (No one helps nobody)

Furthermore, additional agreements were made devolving to monochrom any
and every legal claim pertaining to resale rights involving the 
artwork "Lord Jim Lodge".

In practical terms this means: without the agreement of the owners of
the trademarks specified above, those works that contain these
trademarks may not be used in any way. This applies first and foremost
to reproduction and exhibition.

Legal action is being considered against galleries such as the NGBK in
Berlin, Galerie Bleich-Rossi in Vienna and the Forum Stadtpark in Graz,
which in view of planned upcoming exhibitions run in danger of
infringing on these rights.

This approach is intended to create a foundation for franchising
concepts and artistic "restartups". Thus, in cooperation with
Teyssandier-Springer, monochrom is investigating the acquisition of
additional trademarks with a high symbolic value but low real capital
volume. Netbase (Institute for New Cultural Technologies, Vienna) and
the artist group ubermorgen.com (Prix Ars Electronica 2005) have been
named as potential precarized candidates for acquisition.

Download the press conference:

http://www.teyssandier-springer.com/lordjimloge.htm
http://www.lordjimloge.com
http://www.monochrom.at/english/

Contact:
Roland Gratzer
Tel.: +43 650 999 6870
rg AT monochrom.at