Other than involving their respective Web campaigns, these two tidbits are only semantically related—you can file them both under odds and ends. While artist stages the inaugural “Intellectual Property Asshole Competition,” fans of unfortunately named and since changed Butt Hole Road have waged an Internet campaign to change the name back to the rude original.
AP versus Shepard Fairy
In this competition, the winner is still a loser. A gutsy artist irritated both by the Associated Press’s assault on fair use and one AP target’s hypocrisy, has set up the “Intellectual Property Asshole Competition.”
A quick rundown of this particular situation: Shepard Fairy created an artistic rendition featuring then Presidential candidate Barack Obama, inserting the word “Hope” beneath. Once picked up by the campaign and used as a poster, the rendition became instantly iconic. The AP, though, didn’t like it one bit, because the painting was based on a Mannie Garcia photograph, which the AP owns. Let the high profile legal spatting begin.
Fairy could have come out of this with iconic artist status, which requires first an artist be targeted by the Man for his status quo challenging work. Alas, Fairy had his own cease-and-desist letters for artists appropriating where he had first appropriated.
Evan Roth, the founder of our new competition, wants to see who’s quicker on the draw. He’s painted on canvas the Garcia photo as well as Fairy’s Hope poster and has put them up for sale. The first to send him a cease and desist notice wins.
Yes, it’s a publicity stunt. A darn good one, too.
The King of All Bad Road Names
Archers Way in Consibrough, South Yorks, in Britain, was once known as Butt Hole Road. Residents pushed to have the name changed for obvious reasons, including persistent mooning and picture taking by the road sign.
The road got its name by being the pathway to a communal “water butt” eons ago. Google reveals to English speakers outside of Britain that a “water butt” is a large container for collecting rainwater.
Articles detailing the humorous event mention “jokers have already started an internet petition to get the name changed back again.” One has to use Google UK to find the end of the Internet where that one’s posted, however. Bad jokes involving “butt” and “end,” though, are in relatively good supply.
As far as headlines for this story go, Digg.com gets the glory.
