Sculptural installations can fail for a variety of reasons — some site specific works are not built to accommodate changing conditions, others are scorned by the community (see Richard Serra’s Tilted Arc), and finally, there is a category of works that are just plain dangerous. This week I’m counting down 5 art installation disasters, mishaps and failures.

5. Spaceship Earth’s crash landing in Kennesaw, GA

Images: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Thejerm

Spaceship Earth was created by Finnish American sculptor Eino. The piece was commissioned in November 2000 by PowerBar founders Brian and Jennifer Maxwell as a tribute to environmentalist David Brower.

It took Eino 6 years to complete the 175 ton sculpture — comprised of 88 individual pieces of Brazilian blue quartzite bonded together with epoxy. The stonework globe is adorned with 2‚400 bronze pieces and topped with a life-size bronze figure of the late Brower.

After a few years of searching for a home, Spaceship Earth was accepted by Kennesaw State University. The sculpture mysteriously collapsed in December 2006, only three months after installation on campus — nobody was injured.

The failure is attributed to inadequate adhesive, but according to The Associated Press, Eino and a Holland-based expert suspect it was the work of vandals:

Eino said it looked like someone had tried to pull the life-size bronze figure of Brower from its perch atop the globe. He said the expert noticed what looked like chain marks around the figure’s neck and tire tracks in the grass

Eino in 2007 concluding the collapse was mechanically induced:

Eino worked for nearly 4 months to resurrect Spaceship Earth in October 2007. “It was very difficult for me to put it back together mentally,” he said, “I felt absolutely horrible when it came down, but I felt a responsibility to put it back up.”

In 2009, Montreal-based producer, Tor, released Illinoize –  a free remix tape that samples instrumentals from Sufjan Stevens 2005 LP Illinoise, and mashes them with the likes of Aesop Rock, Big Daddy Kane, Gift of Gab (Blackalicious), C.L. Smooth, Outkast, Brother Ali, and Grand Puba. Almost a year and a half later, the compilation has surpassed 50,000 downloads.

Tor notes on his website that Stevens’ label Asthmatic Kitty contacted him and provided licenses to use the underlying instrumental samples. “A really refreshing and awesome move from them,” he writes, “in a time where unfortunately a lot of record companies are still trying to resist the changes in how people listen to, distribute, and manipulate music.”

Mark Hosler of Negativland talks about the band’s role as Creative Commons’ (CC) first Project Lead. In 2003 CC recruited the sound collage pioneers to oversee drafting of the Sampling License which allows people to “create collage art and “mash-ups” — as well as other art forms based on re-used materials — from licensed works.”

While  he lauds CC for articulating the shortcomings of the copyright regime and its attempt to provide alternatives, Hosler describes his reluctance to contribute because of unwarranted licensing restrictions. “Part of the bargain of cultural production, is that you don’t get total control,” he says, “if you want total control [...] keep it in your bedroom — play it for your friends — that’s it.”

Creative Commons retired the Sampling License in 2007, opting to retain 2 licenses (SamplingPlus, and Noncommercial SamplingPlus) which permit noncommercial sharing of licensed work.

Read the 2003 press release announcing the Negativland/CC effort.

you thought we wouldn’t notice is a site “dedicated to pointing out those things that give you that feeling of ‘haven’t I seen that somewhere before?’” YTWWN encourages artists and others to post examples of egregious copyright infringement.

Visit YTWWN (Thanks, Susan Beth!)

Access to the original: check. Substantial similarity: check. Statute of limitations: lapsed. Folk singer Jake Holmes sued Jimmy Page for copyright infringement  — 41 years after Dazed and Confused appeared on Led Zeppelin’s self-titled album (1969).

Because Holmes is bringing suit more than three years after the infringement began (just over 4 decades ago), his damages will be limited to the last three years.

Jake Holmes’ Dazed and Confused:

Led Zeppelin’s Dazed and Confused:

More from NYT. Read the complaint from TMZ.

BBC news reports that the Swedish anti-copyright group which founded The Pirate Bay has disbanded. The Piracy Bureau, or Piratbyrån website states, “STÄNGT FÖR EFTERTANKE” which means “closed for reflection” in English.

The announcement follows the recent death of co-founder Ibi Kopimi Botani.

Apart from launching the infamous BitTorrent tracker The Pirate Bay in 2003, Piratbyrån was the creator and advocate of kopimi — a copyright alternative:

kopimi (copyme), symbol showing that you want to be copied. use kopimi in your own fancy. kopimi may be put on homepages or blogs, in books, in software, as sound logos in music or whatever.

Botani developed the kopimi concept and logo in 2005.

Vincent Peters (aka Vince P.) sued Kanye West, Roc-a-Fella Records and UMG Recordings on Friday for copyright infringement. Peters allegedly gave West (via his manager) a copy of Stronger, a song he recorded in 2006, seven months prior to West recording a song of the same title.

The complaint states that West’s Stronger “copies significant and important parts of Peters’ lyrics identically or almost identically” and contains a similar refrain as a major element of the song. The hooks compared:

Vince P Stronger (2006)
What don’t kill me make me stronger
The more I blow up the more you wronger
You coped my CD you can feel my hunger
The wait is over couldn’t wait no longer

Kanye West Stronger (2007)
N- n- now th- that don’t kill me can only make me stronger
I need you to hurry up now cause I can’t wait much longer
I know I got to be right now cause I can’t get much wronger
Man I’ve been waitin’ all night now that’s how long I’ve been on you

Incidentally, both songs have a similar theme –  “recount[ing] the difficulties of a young rapper breaking into the recording business.” According to the complaint, Peters is seeking impoundment and destruction of all copies
of the allegedly infringing work and damages.

Playboy is suing rapper Drake for the unauthorized use of Fallin’ in Love by Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds (1975) in his break out single Best I Ever Had (2009). Recognizing the “enormous commercial success” of the EP, according to The Boombox, Playboy seeks to destroy all remaining copies of the work and collect damages.

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has reversed its position on .XXX, allowing the extension to have its place amongst other top level domains. “It will become, like .info,” said Wired “a low-rent home for sites run by hackers who want to infect your computer with malware” — which is OK as long as it’s largely ignored.

The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) has reportedly sent a mailer to its members soliciting donations to challenge groups that “promote Copyleft in order to undermine our Copyright.” Among the threats to the performance royalties group are Creative Commons, Public Knowledge, and Electronic Frontier Foundation. More from ZeroPaid.