Nate Rezac wants to open a ’30s/’40s-gangster-style bar in Fremont. He’s been planning it for ages, but he gets the inspiration for the name when he sees Jeremy Bert’s artwork at McLeod Residence. Bert’s piece is mismatched salvaged neon letters spelling out the words “Leave Nineteen Million Dollars in Unmarked Bills.”
Rezac decides to call his bar Nine Million in Unmarked Bills (it’s opening June 18 in what was formerly the Triangle Lounge), and he commissions his own neon ransom-note sign with those words but in a different style: upscale, glamorous, all-white letters on a rusted-metal background.
What does the bar owner owe the artist?
A strikingly similar debate raged in 2006, when the fancy department store Barneys put up signs made of mismatched old letters that looked just like the signature work of the artist Jack Pierson—though that “signature” is ironic, considering that Pierson’s work recycles authorless found objects.
Pierson’s gallery wrote a letter denouncing the Barneys signs, which were regularly being mistaken for Pierson’s. The window dresser responsible for the designs said he’d never heard of Pierson. Barneys did nothing, and presumably by next season the signs were replaced by something newly fashionable. You can’t copyright old sign letters.
Similarly, Seattle artist Bert has no legal leg to stand on, according to Donn Zaretsky, the New York attorney who writes The Art Law Blog. Zaretsky looked at both signs (Rezac shared his sign design but asked that it not be published) and saw no case for infringement. The phrase is generic, and the signs look different.
But ethics are another matter. Businesses taking ideas from artists without credit or payment is uncool. It’s especially uncool when the business is big and powerful, and the artist is small and unknown—and when the theft seems undeniable but is denied by the business anyway. That’s what happened when the downtown Seattle branch of the clothing chain Anthropologie ripped off artists Wade Kavanaugh and Stephen Nguyen in 2005—for a wall display that looked like a section of earth and was made of brown paper—without the remotest apology or credit.
But Rezac is not corporate—he’s a longtime bartender whose dream is to open this bar, and Nine Million in Unmarked Bills is not Anthropologie. First of all, Rezac admits he saw and was influenced by Bert’s neon work, though he is quick to point out that the overall idea for the bar was set long ago. Rezac did inquire about Bert’s work, and McLeod bar manager and investor Clarita Hinojosa says she discouraged him from buying the piece and relocating it, since it was already aligned with McLeod. She gave Rezac the artist’s number and recommended he commission another work by Bert.
Instead, Rezac went to his restaurant designer, who ordered the more glam sign from Western Neon. Bert used to work at Western Neon, and someone there tipped him off.
Just as Rezac is no corporate giant, Bert is no blue-chip Pierson. Bert has no gallery representation; his day job is driving a truck around fixing neon signs. He got an art degree in the ceramics department at Alfred University back in the ’90s and settled into the typical artist life: total obscurity and a day job. At least his day job gives him access to scrap neon letters. The ransom note was his way of making the letters’ original function balder: Instead of trying to attract your business, they just demand your money.
Bert was upset when he heard about the new sign. “I don’t want to cause any trouble, but I want some respect, and I wouldn’t mind making a little money,” he said. He asked Rezac to consider buying the piece for a quarter of its sale price ($3,000 instead of $12,000), and Rezac said he would entertain the idea and would have to hang the sign indoors, since his outdoor sign was already made. “He seems really sincere and at least he’s, like, doing what he can,” the artist said, grateful to get anything and to get the work seen again (McLeod closed last year).
But the new solution presented a new problem: Bert’s work would now effectively advertise a business rather than read as art. On top of that, Rezac wanted it tailored to match the space. Rezac had told his own designer the exterior sign should be “really clean, upscale.” Bert’s multicolored sign, by contrast, was “cool but clowny,” Rezac said. Bert would have to comply, or no sale.
Both Bert and Rezac were uneasy—which makes sense. This art doesn’t belong in this bar.
But the decent thing to do is to give Bert some credit and compensation. Could Rezac have come up with the idea for his name and his sign on his own? Yeah. But he didn’t. How about this: Bert drinks for free for life at the bar. Meanwhile, if Rezac describes the history of the bar anywhere (in a plaque, on the menu, in the press), he plugs Bert’s art.
If that happens, supporting NMiUB (what will people actually call it?) won’t mean screwing an artist. A little generosity goes a long way. 
This article has been updated since its original publication.
“without credit”
did he not give him credit? It sounds like he did.
I wouldn’t call it a matter of ethics so much as simple good taste and neighborhood decency.
“Nine Million in Unmarked Bills” is a generic phrase, and if it just happened to be Bert’s art that inspired Rezac to adopt the phrase for his bar, well, I don’t think Rezac necessarily owes him anything. The phrase itself is so generic that adopting it doesn’t even rise to the level of free advertising one appropriates by naming a band Sleater-Kinney, or Bunk Foss, or 764-HERO.
But on the other hand, Seattle is a small town, and people who hang at McLeod are likely to mistake Bert’s work as a tribute to Rezac’s work. In the sense that that makes them neighbors, I think your proposed solution is the best idea possible. I hope they both do well by each other.
If the bar was named 437 Million in Unmarked Bills, would this be open for debate? What’s the real issue here?
Is it the fact that Bert made some random neon sign and Rezac took inspiration from the name?
Is ‘9’ too close to ’19’?
Surely you don’t think Bert coined the phrase, “(insert monetary amount here) in unmarked bills”. It’s been used innumerable times in movies and literature.
The art (Bert’s sign – Rezac’s sign) looks nothing at all alike, so WTF is the problem? I’m no law aficionado, but I would assume if a NY attorney claims there is no case for infringement, then chances are he’s dead on.
If Rezac is candid and forthright about his idea, and it appears he is, then I think Bert has been compensated enough. Think every piece of art in the world is inspiration-free? Peculiar as it may seem, artists often take inspiration from things they see. CALL ME CRAZY!
It would seem to me that if Rezac inquired about the sign and McLeod discouraged him from buying it even though they closed last year, then it sounds like they should be responsible for compensating Bert for making an effort to not sell his work.
I think the Stranger proposed solution is the most palatable. We don’t have to get all philosophical Shepard Fairey to be able to see that the ethics in this case are really quite simple – giving the artist a nod is not going to cost the bar owner much, if anything, and will ingratiate him to a community that will more than likely show their appreciation in dolla dolla billz. Even if it’s just five of them at a time.
I think the Stranger proposed solution is the most palatable. We don’t have to get all philosophical Shepard Fairey to be able to see that the ethics in this case are really quite simple – giving the artist a nod is not going to cost the bar owner much, if anything, and will ingratiate him to a community that will more than likely show their appreciation in dolla dolla billz. Even if it’s just five of them at a time.
Why don’t you show a picture of the sign being put up in the bar so we can judge for ourselves?
@4 Great point. This whole thing Smells Like Teen Spirit. Oh shit, who do I make the check out to for using that phrase. I’m sure both Rezac and Bert will be gratefull for the publicity, and I doubt Bert will ever have to settle a tab at the new place. I think everyone wins.
This situation has made me realize just how badly we need a newspaper- relying on free weekly’s and blogs for information will apparently only lead us to heavily opinionated, misinformed, sensationalized “stories”.
Jeremy was tipped off that someone came to Western Neon looking to have them build a sign using a similar phrase to one used in his “Ransom Note” art piece. They asked the customer about it and that’s when HE SAID he saw Jeremy’s piece at the McLeod residence and it was “too expensive” for him to buy so he changed the phrase slightly and had a fabricator make him his own sign. Western Neon felt uncomfortable enough to call Jeremy and tell him about the request.
Jeremy has NEVER staked a claim on the phrase or demanded any compensation. Jeremy wanted the bar owner to know he will unwillingly be associated with the bar because of the people who viewed Jeremy’s “Ransom Note” at The Bubba Mavis Gallery, The McLeod residence, and Sunset Magazine.
Jeremy is a licensed sign electrician,certified welder,neon artist, ceramicist and a teacher. Trying to belittle him by calling his day job”shit” was insensitive to anybody who works a trade or any other job to support their artistic endeavors. He most recently had a show at “Gather” using the recycled signage (that was headed to a landfill near you) to create the alphabet.
@9 You have most of your story right but the cost of Jeremy’s sign was never an issue, you would know that if you saw the cost of the signs being made. Also the only thing making Jeremy associated with the bar is this misinformed article that was written. When you or Jeremy see the signs you will notice they are made of metal and plex and there is no visible neon and the font is completely different and its a rectangular sign therefore not even slighly resembling Jeremy’s artwork.
I do however agree calling his job “shit” is pretty lame but so is the rest of the article.
********JEN, I HAVE AN IDEA….
DO SOME RESEARCH BEFORE YOU WRITE ANOTHER ONE OF YOUR HALF ASS SLOGS. COMMENT #73 SHOWS JEREMY’S KILLER HIGH LIFE “ART”. DID HE PAY MILLER? I’M GUESSING NOT, DID YOU ASK HIM? OH WAIT YOU PROBABLY DIDN’T DO YOUR RESEARCH, SO NO.
MAYBE YOU SHOULD DO SOMETHING ELSE FOR A LIVING, I HEARD McDONOLDS IS HIRING.********** http://jbjeartists.com/doc/gal/bert-port…
Geez…The Stranger seems to be removing a lot of the comments, particularly critical ones of them…Apparently less reputable papers only herald Freedom of Speech when it suits them. If this post makes it through the gestapo…
This article isn’t journalism, it’s snark. And to call anyone’s job “shit”, particularly in this economy, is an outrage. I would bet 19 MILLION DOLLARS IN UNMARKED BILLS that Bert is making more than this sorry excuse for a reporter anyway, not that it really matters.
The artist deserves compensation hands-down, and clearly the bar owner knows it. Free drinks for life won’t cut it; Bert deserves full compensation for what I believe has already proven to be an inspired piece of work.
The bar owner concedes that he took the business name directly from the artist’s work, so he should either pay the artist a healthy ‘finder’s fee’ of sorts or come up with a different name for the bar.
Also, I found the article by Jen Graves to be poorly written and childishly unprofessional. To take cheap shots at the artist’s day job–which most certainly pays him far more than what a third-rate reporter at the Stranger earns–is totally uncalled for. And what’s with slamming the supposed life of the ‘typical artist’? To call this a work of journalism is a tremendous stretch.
Please pass my comments on to Jen Graves, who I’m guessing can be found at the nearest dive bar drinking martinis and sobbing, the standard life for most ‘typical hack reporters.’
a ‘finders fee’ for art? fuck i guess every artist ever will be gettin their ckeck books out.
funny fourteen…
how do you all feel so much?
http://seattletrademarklawyer.com/
Huh. It says the article has been updated since the original publication. Did they remove the part about calling his job shit? I don’t see it here. I guess I got here too late to be outraged.
I just went to the bar this weekend to check it out. The sign looks nothing like Bert’s art work, and its not a theme bar. On top of that its super nice inside and they had a good dj spinning. I’ll definitly go back.
The artist isn’t owed a damn thing, the name of the bar is different, the sign is different. Just another asshat who wants a piece of someone else’s hard work.