jessfink:

So on Tuesday I rage spiraled into space for a while when I was told that Todd Goldman was ripping off my designs AGAIN.

I know my designs are simple and play on ideas we all understand but the fact is Goldman offered me a job in 2006. He said he loved my Threadless shirts, that he bought a Lil Soap shirt and wanted me to work for him. I told him I would think about it and we never spoke again. A few months later I get links from people to David and Goliath tees, the company he owns and he is selling rip offs of my designs.

So Threadless got their lawyers involved and sent him a cease and desist and eventually, (probably because he was also being sued by ANOTHER artist at the time: http://tinyurl.com/5ubyu7o ) he took them down. Now he is selling them again, as you can see in the above image.

Then as always, whenever I talk about my shirts being ripped off I get emails telling me about more rip offs. This time an Etsy user, Tyneshia Buie who straight up TRACED the design.

I’ve had my shirts ripped off A LOT, Forever 21, Hot Topic, Wet Seal, and every time it gives me insane stomach ulcers and I have to track down the thieving “designers” and send Cease and Desist messages and contact Threadless and lawyers. It’s called protecting your copyright and it’s AWFUL HARD.

At any rate, this Etsy seller was selling the most blatant straight up TRACE of my art work I have ever seen. I got some help from some nice twitter people and the design was removed from the site, but not the seller. As you can see in the image above she isn’t oblivious or ashamed, she knew what she was doing.

The point is that art theivery is fucking bullshit. No one should buy from this girl again, or Todd Goldman/David and Goliath but they do! I’m sure that Etsy user will continue to steal and D+G has merchandise in every major crap store in the world. Help me spread the word that these people are VILLAINS and not in a cool way.

You can see the LONG LEGACY of art theivery by Todd Goldman/ David and Goliath here:
http://travelswithjesus.com/todd_goldman/

Threadless rip offs David and Goliath have sold:
http://jessfink.com/junk/goldmanripps.jpg

Hot Topic rip off and Goldman’s rip off painting of my Lil’ Soap shirt:
http://youthoughtwewouldntnotice.com/blog3/?p=861

The completely unashamed Etsy thief Tyneshia Buie’s store:
http://www.etsy.com/people/glitterbiscuits

My original designs on Threadless:
http://www.threadless.com/profile/145276/finkenstein

As for me, I am sending Cease and Desist messages and contacting lawyers and bathing in a see of stomach acid as I rage spiral into space.

I remember feeling conflicted when I got a Hot Topic shirt for Christmas because of this same problem. From what I’ve seen, the shirt I own isn’t a case of art theft, so with that and because it was a gift I make the exception of wearing it. Now, I’m just trying to implant the idea into my family’s brains to not purchase things for me there anymore.

Fink is a comic artist of whom I’m a fan. While I don’t really keep Chester 5000 XYV (NSFW) in my regular rotation of comics viewing, I read her bio comic Kid With Experience and enjoy them greatly.

(via nedroidcomics)