How can my artwork steer clear of copyright infringement? - EPGD Business Law (2024)

FAQs

How can we solve the copyright infringement problem? ›

Like anything else that can be copyrighted, artwork is protected by copyright when the art is affixed in a tangible form (such as a painting, sculpture, or drawing). You have to register your copyright with the US Copyright Office if you want to be able to take infringers to court and be awarded damages.

Accordingly, you cannot claim copyright to another's work, no matter how much you change it, unless you have the owner's consent. See Circular 14, Copyright Registration for Derivative Works and Compilations.

If you edit an image that you didn't create, copyright law still applies. The only way to avoid copyright infringement with images is to create unique works, purchase a license to use an image or find a free-to-use image.

Copyright infringement is the use or production of copyright-protected material without the permission of the copyright holder. Copyright infringement means that the rights afforded to the copyright holder, such as the exclusive use of a work for a set period of time, are being breached by a third party.

First-time buyers should ensure that an authenticity certificate is issued along with the artwork. The certificate should list details of the art piece such as the title, name of the artist, medium and size, an image of the artwork and be appropriately signed by the gallery representative or the artist.

A watermark on an image is a clear sign that the image is copyrighted. Often, the watermark will contain text that indicates the name or company to whom the image belongs: do some googling and find out. Under no circ*mstances should you attempt to use software to strip the image of its watermark.

There is actually no percentage by which you must change an image to avoid copyright infringement. While some say that you have to change 10-30% of a copyrighted work to avoid infringement, that has been proven to be a myth.

Fair use of copyrighted works, as stated in US copyright law, “for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of copyright.”

Can you use old art without copyright? ›

The definition of limited time has changed over the years making it difficult to know when work no longer has copyright protection, however, one rule you can always count on is that any work created before 1924 is in the “public domain,” meaning it has no copyright protection and is free to use in any way you like.

Obtaining Permission

You send a letter to the holder asking for permission and stating how you intend to use the image. The holder sends a letter back granting you permission. Your request should be as specific as possible in describing the intended use of the image.

Citing an image has nothing to do with fair use. Providing attribution for an artist or linking to an image offers you no protection against copyright infringement; it only helps you avoid plagiarism. To determine if you can use the image, see the four-factors of fair use, outlined at the top of this page.

Preservation is about preventing damage to a work of art and preserving it for future generations. It's also about ensuring that we can continue to enjoy an artist's vision without the risk of losing it forever.

The work you share online is vulnerable to copying and reproduction on various other mediums and platforms. This means that protecting your work may be as important as sharing it in the first place. The good news: there are strategies to protect your work from potential infringers.

Copyrights protect the expression of an idea. Ideas may be expressed in artistic forms such as photographs, songs, poems, sculptures and paintings. Copyrights give the author or artist the exclusive right to copy, distribute, publicly perform, and make derivative works from the protected work.

A signed statement of authenticity from the artist or an expert on the artist is ideal. An original gallery sales receipt, receipt directly from the artist, or an appraisal from an expert in the era are also good options. Unfortunately, anything can be copied or falsified, but these are generally good options.

How do you know if the artwork is effective? ›

Art is good when it masters the artistic elements and principles. A Formalist artist focuses on an artwork's form—the way it's made and what it looks like. In a successful piece of art, the visual features are most important: line quality, color, composition, and other artistic elements and principles.

Both Google and Bing offer the function to check an image's usage rights (or license). Simply tick the relevant box on the search engine advanced search options, and search for the image you wish to use* or a completely new non-copyrighted reusable image.

To start, you need to know that copyright is an “automatic right.” Copyright automatically protects your work from the moment it is fixed in a tangible form. In other words, once you create a piece of art, write a story, or write down or record a musical composition, it is protected by copyright.

However, to avoid copyright disputes you must be able to prove that you are the original copyright owner of your creative work and when that work was completed. This can actually be more difficult to prove than you first think, especially when you've created the work yourself.

Fair Use - Most teaching- and paper-writing uses of images fall under the famous “fair use” provision (single use for scholarly purposes). Basically, fair use allows academics to use even copyrighted materials a single time to a limited audience without securing the permission of the copyright holder.

Fair use allows limited use of copyrighted material without permission from the copyright holder for purposes such as criticism, parody, news reporting, research and scholarship, and teaching.

Copyright, a form of intellectual property law, protects original works of authorship including literary, dramatic, musical, and artistic works, such as poetry, novels, movies, songs, computer software, and architecture.

Back to the famous paintings of “Mona Lisa”, “The Starry Night”, and “The Scream”, since the authors / painters have died over at least seventy years, there is no longer copyright protection in these famous paintings. Hence, these famous paintings (artistic works) are now in the public domain.

Can I sell a painting that I copied? ›

It is illegal for you to sell a copy of the artist work without the original artist permission. That would be Copyright infringement.

In short, the painting itself is in the public domain if the artist has been dead 100 years (regardless of when the painting itself was made), but the image of the painting has its own copyright i.e. if you use a photo of the Mona Lisa in your game, the person who took the photo actually has the copyright of that image ...

As a universal rule, most images are protected by copyright laws around the world and you need permission to use an image as-is or to adapt it.

When an image has copyright protection, no one else can use the image without the owner giving permission. With these rules in place, you need to assume that there is copyright attached to any image you come across. Otherwise, you may face a court order, fines, or escalated legal action.

Can a business post your picture without permission? Generally, the answer is no. Unless you've signed a waiver or release specifically authorizing your employer to use your image, your boss likely needs your consent before publishing any photos that feature you.

If you're using it in a blog post or on your website, put the name of the creator and a link to their website or the source of the image beneath it. The format should be something like this: “Photo by [artist name with their website hyperlinked]” or “Image by [artist name] via [website hyperlinked].”

If you edit an image that you didn't create, copyright law still applies. The only way to avoid copyright infringement with images is to create unique works, purchase a license to use an image or find a free-to-use image.

The standard filing fee for copyrighting art is $55, but if you're registering only one work as the sole author and claimant, it will cost only $35. You must file individual claims for each artwork you wish to copyright. Remember, the moment you create a work of art, the copyright belongs to you.

Is my art automatically copyrighted? ›

The Basics. To start, you need to know that copyright is an “automatic right.” Copyright automatically protects your work from the moment it is fixed in a tangible form. In other words, once you create a piece of art, write a story, or write down or record a musical composition, it is protected by copyright.

It is important to know that copyright nearly always rests with the artist, regardless of who owns the artwork. There are exceptions to this rule, such as work that has been specifically commissioned or completed during employment, in which case copyright stays with the commissioner or employer.

Generally, for copyright protected material, the person must acquire permission if the use is outside the bounds of fair use. If the material has protections in place under the law, or if the use would cause a violation, he or she will need permission from the owner.

If you do not want to pay the fee to register a book copyright, and do not need the legal peace of mind that comes with officially registering a copyright, then you can copyright your book for free by simply writing it yourself.

For any work published after Jan 1. 1978, the duration of copyright is from creation to 70 years after the author's death. For iconic images, movie posters, books, music, and other “titled” works, they can be found on the Copyright Office database.

As a general rule, for works created after January 1, 1978, copyright protection lasts for the life of the author plus an additional 70 years.

One way to make sure your intended use of a copyrighted work is lawful is to obtain permission or a license from the copyright owner. Contact a copyright owner or author as far as pos- sible in advance of when you want to use the material specified in your permissions request.

The license between the original creator and the new creator is the reason why there is no copyright infringement when the original work is re-used by a new author or artist. The license gives legal permission to use the work in the way agreed between the two creators provided that attribution is given.

This means that ancient works (sculptures, paintings) such as Da Vinci's, Géricault's or Rembrandt's works are no longer protected by copyright – they are said to be part of the public domain. Accordingly, you are free to reproduce them.

When an artist creates a painting, the artist owns both the copyright in the artwork, and the physical artwork. Ownership of the copyright is an intellectual property right. Ownership of the physical artwork is a personal property right. A sale of the physical artwork does not transfer the copyrights in the artwork.

Can an artist sue you for using their art? ›

When these rights are infringed, copyright owners can file a lawsuit seeking money damages for infringement as well as a court injunction to mandate that the infringer cease its infringing activity. As you can imagine, copyright law is therefore an important tool for visual artists.

Also, copyright protection does not preclude another author from creating independently authored, yet identical, works. Q: Can I use part of someone's work if I change the work? A: In general, you may not use someone else's work without their consent no matter how much you change it.