09/28/2024
I'm 1 of the 4 owners of Artsy Octopus. I have left the daily operations for 1.5 years due to the other owners abuse and hostile attempt to take my share of the business. My name is Chris Clements-Aldridge as you can find on the legal documents filed with the State of North Carolina.
Look at this crap posted and stated by my hostile co-owners. I am the artist that came up with an octopus as our image because I am good at painting them. See my signature on the floor, CMC, it is the name I paint under. It stands for Christina Marie Clements which is my maiden name. I also use it to stand for my artist name and other company named Christina Marie Coastal.
I named, designed, created, and painted the purple octopus for the store's image if they would sign a copyright release so they could legally use it. They did not! Copyright Infringement is a Federal Civil and Criminal Crime. But for me to take them to Federal court, lawyers want $10,000 contingency which I do not have as a starving artist with PTSD from working in healthcare during the Pandemic.
I turned to Art and EMDR Therapy to move forward. My co-owners used this against me. Took my start up money and have refused to pay me my legal profits from commissioned sales from the store. They have lied to customers. They have tried to block me from my own store with threats. They have not even given my tax paypers that I legally have to file like a K1.
But back to their lies. This painting is mine on the floor. It is not about "Ernie." That's just a convenient explanation of my creation. They get to erase me and my art, by making this about them which it never was.
STOP THE LIES FOR YOUR OWN GAIN!
See my initials aka signature?! They tried to cover it up with a heart shape and wrote "Ernie" on it. When they found out that was another illegal thing that they did, they showed my signature again after they had covered it up. Horrible business co-owners. One of the co-owners also owns Gen Z Art and Gifts from Nags Head. The other owner even tried "Sleeping her way to the top." She told me first hand that she had "been weak while her husband was taking their son to college." That she "took the landlord his favorite vodka to him and they messed around not just once." This Jeopardized our lease for Artsy Octopus too. They also claim that it is Veteran owned....which only 1 out of 4 are a Veteran. So technically yes, but noy majority. Many customers have told me that they have meet the owner, Michelle, and she never mentions she only owns 25% of the business but implies it's only her business. Just lool at the facts, ya'll! They're right here in the pictures!
There's a new painting over mine of another purple octopus. Which it is illegal to destroy another artist's work without the artist's consent. But here is a posting of the artist, Kennedy, showing off that she illegally destroyed my work while she used my same theme of a purple octopus. Maybe you shouldn't post and take pictures of you committing a crime! Just a thought!
I have hires legal counsel. We have sent paperwork for access to company's finances. But like usual, they do not respond. Next step in the legal system is to take it to court and fore to pay thousands for the illegal crimes that they have committed against me. Hopefully they get to pay court costs when it's all said and done.
