After Futura‘s trademark infringement lawsuit against The North Face took an ugly turn, the artist told of his struggle to the public in a heartfelt open letter. The approach seems to have worked, because The North Face has decided to discontinue its use of the contested logo.
“The North Face, as well as VF Corporation and its family of brands, are home to and partners of many incredibly talented artists. We have great respect for artistic individuality, expression, and intellectual property, and would never want an artist to feel otherwise,” the brand said in a statement posted to their website tonight. “This includes the recent unfortunate situation involving Futura, an artist we hold in high esteem.”
The outdoor brand’s statement seems a bit disingenuous given the context of Futura’s statement last week.
Futura’s legal battle with The North Face pertains to its use of a logo that looks very similar to the graffiti artist’s “atom” insignia for its misleadingly named FUTURELIGHT line.
In a lengthy statement posted to Instagram, Futura detailed just how gut-wrenching it was to have his art and identity as an artist ripped apart in court by a huge corporation. The artist spoke of the hurt he felt when TNF diminished his work in court by referring to him as a “self-described street artist who sometimes uses an atom motif in his artwork.” He also revealed that the brand threatened him with covering all of its lawyer fees as an attempt to intimidate him, going on to call the scare tactic “completely reprehensible.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/CQY8uT7nqnV/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
Following his statement, many people in the culture rallied behind Futura. And it looks like the public support has gotten to The North Face. While the court case is far from over – as Futura’s lawyer Jeff Gluck told Highsnobiety – the brand’s move to discontinue its use of the contested logo is a big win for Futura and artists everywhere.