OBEY

So my friend Shepard Fairey (who did the Boneclouds artwork and the OBEY posters found on buildings all over the world) has found himself in the middle of a lawsuit with the Associated Press concerning his HOPE poster for the Obama campaign. It involves the picture he used to base his poster on and whether or not he should pay damages to the AP and the original photographer (who interestingly didn’t recognize it as his photo). It is a very interesting case and I find it relevant to all artists in these internet days. What is fair game? I side with Shepard on this one. I believe that the original photo and his poster are completely different pieces of art and should be treated as such. The original photo would never have been so powerful and popular had Shepard not completely altered and transformed it into his own art. They are in no ways the same picture.

Shepard has agreed to pay the original fee which I think is fair. But, both sides of the case are interesting. Here is a link to an NPR Fresh Air piece which gives more insight into Shepard and this case: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=101182453

In other news, I have been writing a bunch of new songs this winter and playing a lot of electric guitar and drums. The new songs are definitely on the rock side of things. That may sound like a departure but anyone who has seen me play live knows that it is not. I grew up playing rock and I guess the new stuff is a return to form. Only Transformed. It feels really really really good and that’s what matters. Not thinking too hard about it.  Just getting the songs down as demos, following my heart. I will hopefully begin recording the new album soon.

In the meantime I will be playing some solo shows this Spring including Florida, Montana, Idaho, California and Alaska. I am really looking forward to seeing you all out there!

Love,
Mason
Minnesota
3/05/09

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