For those of you who don't know who Alec Monopoly is, or Mike Mozart, here's a quick recap:  Alec Monopoly is a street artist who sells his paintings for tens of thousands of dollars to celebrities, wall street members, hedge fund owners, etc. He uses the Monopoly Man character, Richie Rich and other well know characters in his artwork, hence the name Alec "Monopoly".  He recently garnered even more main stream fame when collaborating with Forever 21 on a line of clothing and accessories.  He is also quite frequently seen hob knobbing with Scott Disick of the Kardashian family fame.  He has also stirred up controversy for always covering his face with a bandana or some other method, he says he does this because he creates some illegal graffiti art and doesn't want to be recognized, although it is fairly easy to find out who he really is with a quick internet search...wink, wink.  He has an Instagram following of over 320,000 followers.

Mike Mozart is most well-known for his YouTube videos posting funny failed toy reviews, under the name "Jeepers Media" with subscribers topping over 415,000.  He also states that he has done character work for years for large companies and books under licensing agreements/work for hire.  He also says to have appeared 100's of times on QVC and HSN as a Product Pitchman.  He is now posting his Monopoly character artwork on Instagram as well as the sketches he claims he created for Alec.

So, why am a posting about these two, and why is it relevant and important for other artists to take note? Well, it came to light in mid to late 2015 that Mike Mozart was actually the "ghost artist" for some of Alec's work, particularly involving the Monopoly Man paintings, for the past five years.  It raises some very real issues for artists to be concerned about when it comes to copyrights, work for hire, collaborations, etc., anything to do with working with another artist or company with your art.  

Lot's of artists hire other artists and designers to do a portion of their work for them, this is fairly standard in the art industry, and in the agreements it's usually detailed as to the scope of work and credit that will be provided, or not, and the royalty or flat fee to be paid, length of of use, etc..  Many artists will even sell some of their art outright for a flat fee and receive no credit whatsoever on the finished product, particularly so in the fashion industry with fabric patterns.  ​What is interesting about this particular situation is that even though Mike admits to working with Alec for 5 years as a "ghost artist" he claims to have "never signed anything! I never agreed to anything!" (quoted directly from his comment on this Instagram post).  Mike appears to now regret working with Alec, ie the following quote from his Instagram comment in reference to a discussion about working with Alec:  "I'm going out of my way to collaborate with other artists to help build their careers (which he has claimed he was doing for Alec as well), rather than exploit them and claim their work as my own.  Artists should be supporting other artists. Not using them as a cash ATM Machine!" This really raises the question of why he would continue to let Alec claim his work as his own, knowing full well it wasn't, and allowing this to go on for five years, and now is calling foul play.... As an artist who has claimed that he's worked with other companies in the past in a licensing capacity as an illustrator, I would think Mike would understand the importance of having a contract in place with everything outlined in order to protect both sides, I'm curious as to why this never happened, if indeed that is the case.  And at this point in time there hasn't been an explanation, although Alec's side claims there were documents signed outlining their working agreement as "work for hire", again, no public proof exists either way , so we are left questioning what kind of arrangement these two actually had.  All we know for sure is that Mike Mozart did create art specifically for Alec Monopoly to use for a period of five years, ending in 2015.

One of the main issues I would like to address that arises from this situation is, the importance of contracts from the very beginning, even if doing business with friends and family, particularly friends and family!  Verbal agreements can often be easily and innocently misconstrued, especially as time goes by and people change, events change, more verbal agreement added to what was initially agreed on, etc. So, please, always make sure you have a written contract in place so that both sides know exactly what the business arrangement is from the very start.  It will prevent sooooo many headaches down the road, trust me!

Mike Mozart posts quite frequently to his Instagram page with his Monopoly Man art (and a few other well-known characters) and adds in the caption how he used to create the art for Alec Monopoly but no longer collaborates with him.  He has also claimed that he is not doing this for fame, but rather to bring attention to the matter.  Mike agreed to a collaboration of some sort with Alec for five years, and there has been no mention of this being a situation where Mike was forced to create the work and give it to Alec, it appears to have been willingly provided by Mikes choice.  Mike claims in his Instagram comments that he is defending artists whose work has been exploited by other artists, just as he was with Alec.  But, this wasn't just a one time deal, it happened over a fiver year period with (Mike claims) 100's of designs being authorized by Mike for Alec to use.  This simply isn't a case of one artist taking another artists work without permission, this is a case where there was some sort of agreement for the art to be used.  It appears that once Alec started to reach real main stream fame, ie the Forever 21 deal, and demand higher prices for his original paintings, Mike no longer wanted to work with Alec, which is fine, but why make it such a huge public issue/calling out?  When you agree to work with somebody at a set price, that is what your agreement is, regardless of how much money they make off your work.  You can of course renegotiate over time if you see the popularity increase and the other party making more money from your art, but the other party might not want to pay you more, and that's fine.  If you can't come to an agreement that works for both of you, you move on, that's business. However, it isn't okay to bash the other person publicly because you no longer like the terms you initially agreed upon, or couldn't renegotiate those terms to either parties liking, this is just bad business.  Again, why it is so important to have everything outlined in a contract with every possible issue being addressed at the very beginning. But if you don't do this and things take a turn for the worse, the only person to blame is you for not having made the right business choices.  We all have to take responsibility for our choices in life, and business is no different.  It's nice to be able to help other artists out, but the reality is that when you are dealing with money/business it can get very ugly quickly unless you have the proper protection, ie contract(s), in place.

And another issue that needs to be addressed is copyrights.  One thing I've noticed when searching art on Instagram, is that many artists have jumped on the Monopoly guy art bandwagon; it seems every up and coming artists is painting some version of the Monopoly Man, and even some more well established artists are doing the same, along with other cartoon/comic book characters.  At this point in time it doesn't seem as though Hasbro is cracking down on anyone for appropriating the character into their art and selling it, but that isn't to say that at some point they may chose to do just that.  So, a word of caution here, just because everyone else is doing it doesn't make it okay, and doesn't mean it isn't a copyright violation.  If it isn't your original art, your original character, don't take a chance of getting sued, if anything contact the original creator and get permission...in writing of course!  But, in my opinion it's always better to be an original anyway :)  It's also interesting how a lot of Mike's Instagram "supporters" recommend to Mike that he should sue Alec for copyright infringement... Well, first off it's not copyright infringement if you personally "let" the person use your work for the purpose of creating art to sell, and even more so if it was a "work for hire" situation as Alec and his team claim, and secondly they don't own the copyright to the Monopoly Man character, so they can't sue each other regardless.  Mike has also repeatedly told people in his Instagram comments, that because these are one of a kind, fine art paintings with no reproductions it isn't considered a copyright infringement on the Hasbro character, unfortunately this is completely wrong and I hope no other artists take this as being truth!  Just because Hasbro is fine with it doesn't mean every other intellectual property owner will be okay with someone appropriating their work. 

​Here is the legal definition of copyright infringement: "Copyright infringement is the use of works protected by copyright law without permission, infringing certain exclusive rights granted to the copyright holder, such as the right to reproduce, distribute, display or perform the protected work, or to make derivative works."

Even displaying a copy of someone's original art can be considered copyright infringement, and creating derivative works is definitely a no-no, which is what Alec Monopoly and Mike Mozart are both doing.  Yes, they may have permission from Hasbro to use the character (Alec states he has permission), but that doesn't mean that Hasbro is necessarily going to allow everyone to do so, and other character owners may not be so generous. Ultimately if someone chooses to sue for copyright infringement it would be up to a judge or jury to determine whether or not it was actually an infringement.  But the real kicker is how much that will cost you if you take a chance...anywhere from $100,000 (on the low end) and up JUST for lawyers fees, JUST to defend yourself, and if you lose...well...just don't do it to begin with, because it can pack a hefty fine of up to $150,000 for EACH infringement...and...you could end up having to pay the other parties lawyer fees along with your own, yikes!!

I hope this article helps other artists be aware of the importance of having contracts in place at the very beginning of any agreement that involves your art.  And to be very careful what you are creating in order to avoid any copyright issues.  It will be interesting to see, if anything, what comes out of all of this, or if we ever know the real truth behind Alec and Mikes agreement.  For now let us use this as an example of "what not to do" when collaborating with others with our art, and how to professionally handle any business falling out we may have to deal with.

AND...THE WINNER IS......BECKY!!

Thank you all so much for joining in on the fun, I appreciate you all so much ������

send me your mailing address Becky, to: meganduncanson@yahoo.com

I've been trying to be more active on Instagram over the past year and love the format.  It's all pictures and is perfect for a visual artist to share their art, behind the scenes, works in progress and so much more!  And I'm truly amazed to have reached such a huge milestone of 6,000 followers!!  Thank you from the bottom of my heart for following my art journey, your likes and sharing your inspiring comments.  

If your not on Instagram and enjoy art, photography, fashion or anything visual it's a beautiful place to join in, definitely check it out and be sure to follow my Instagram @madartstudios :)  I try to post at least once a day for the most part, and lot's of work in progress photos and photos you won't see anywhere else online.

In honor of this milestone I want to do a giveaway to show my appreciation to all of my followers :)

​You can win this set of (4) 11"x14" signed prints from my very Limited Edition 2015 Collector's Set of prints.  You can read about the limited details of this set here.

RULES:

This contest is open worldwide, to past, current and new collectors of MADART.  It will be a random selection and will not be based off anything other than a random system, comments are not weighted any differently.

1.  Comment on this post with your first name and anything you'd like to say :)
2.  Subscribe to the Art That Colors the Soul Blog - click ​HERE or use the sign up form below.
3.  I will be cross verifying that all commenters have also subscribed to the blog, if not you won't be included in the drawing.
4.  Contest will run from 10am January 14, 2016 through 8pm, January 17th.  
5.  I will randomly choose a winner and announce the winner in the comment section and at the top of this blog post with their first name only.
6.  The winner must e-mail me to claim their prize within 24 hours after 8pm January 17th, if the winner has not contacted me I will randomly draw a new winner, and the initial winner will forfeit their prize.  So be sure to check back to this blog post and/or your e-mail to see if you have won!
7.  Winner will receive (4) signed limited edition prints, valued at $300
8.  No purchase necessary
9.  Sponsored by MADART, Inc., Florida

GOOD LUCK and thank you again for following my art, you are all so appreciated and I love to be able to share my art through these giveaway :)

All the best,
​Megan

The definition of the phrase "Cherry on Top" is full of positivity and I wanted to share some of this positiveness with all of you today!  Whenever you have achieved a goal or done something nice for someone, take it one step further and find the "Cherry on Top", always look for a way to put the "Cherry on Top" and excel at life!  This is just another way of always reaching further, and aiming to be the best person you can be, don't just stop at good, go for great!!

Don't ever settle for mediocre; even when you think you've reached the pinnacle of success or completed a goal, look closer and see what more you can do to improve yours and other's lives, make that YOUR "Cherry on Top - we CAN always do more.

Cherry on Top definition:  "A desirable feature perceived as the finishing touch to something that is already very good: (ie) the car is faster than a Ferrari, but the cherry on the cake is the price".

We are so often raised, and repeatedly told, to put others before ourselves, but I believe in putting yourself first and nurturing your soul in order to be the best person you can for yourself AND others.  If we don't look after ourselves, how can we do the same for anyone else?  

Be number 1 in your own book and fulfill your dreams and goals while taking others along on the journey and encouraging them to do the same.  When we are happy and fulfilled it exudes from our souls and inspires and motivates other's to do the same.  Spread the joy of living a life well lived so we can all be "Number 1".

Starting  my New Year off right with a new painting on the easel, a 72"x36" abstract PoP Art Style in shades of blue, brown and gray.  One of my goals for this year is to create more of these PoP Art Abstract paintings, they are a lot of fun to paint and are perfect for just about any home decor or corporate themed interiors.  

This painting is on a 72"x36" Genie Canvas, one of the last few blank one's I have left...but luckily I have several more on the way, including a massive 60"x96" canvas, yikes!!  

What are some of your goals for 2016?