Story Archive

Art Authority

In 1998, the owners of the Chrysler Building in New York, N.Y., demanded that Julie Gaines’s housewares store stop including their landmark skyscraper on its line of dishware depicting the New York skyline. “How can they say we can’t use the Chrysler Building?” Gaines asked. “Leaving off the Chrysler Building would be like leaving off the World Trade Center.” Well, now the Port Authority, which owns the World Trade Center, wants her to do exactly that. Twice over, in fact: the “212” line of dishes shows both the late Twin Towers and the new One World Trade Center. T Authority’s attorney says the merchandise showing the landmarks “interferes with the Port Authority’s control of its own reputation,” and asks that it all be destroyed. (AC/New York Times) ...If the Port Authority wants to control its reputation, it should remember that it’s better to be known for owning landmarks than for trying to trademark the skyline.