Do you have the right?

Many years ago I designed the logo for the Smoky Hill Museum. The typography was created by hand, then scanned, and each letter meticulously drawn, positioned, and outlined in an early version of Adobe Illustrator. The illustrations are original pencil drawings, done from photos I took of Land and Communication, the WPA-era statues on the front of the building. I loved the result and this logo has always been one of my favorites.

Over the years, the Museum updated the logo, removing the tagline and changing the color scheme. They didn’t check with me before doing this, nor did they need to. When I finish a logo project, it belongs to the client — I retain no rights other than being able to use it in promotions for my business.

This is the Museum’s logo as it looks today.

Imagine my surprise when I received an email from Susan Hawksworth, Smoky Hill Museum Director, asking me if I knew anything about this:

The Smoky Hill Inn & Suites graphic looks like blatant infringement to me, but because the logo wasn’t legally copyrighted or trademarked, the Museum might not have a case. The situation is being looked at by City of Salina attorneys, and plans are in process to protect the Museum’s graphic identity in the future.

But it does seem like changing that signage would be a community-minded thing to do.

Is your company’s logo and branding copyrighted? What would you do in this situation? Please share any comments below.