Our third post and we unfortunately need to address the rearing of an ugly issue . . . again – Orphan Works! This is collectively one of, if not the most important topic artists should be concerned about in relation to your business and your artwork. This topic has come up many times previously, with a big surge in 2015.
Essentially, companies are claiming that they are impeded in the quest for creativity by having to seek out copyright owners before using found and published artwork. Their goal would be for laws to be passed that dramatically change the steps these companies would have to take to seek the owner of published artwork – requiring almost no effort to be made to seek the copyright owners before claiming rights to artwork. So, the intellectual property you crafted and created could be “stolen” from you without your involvement or permission, and there is no opportunity for you to make any money from the use of your designs! Companies simply have to state that they could not locate the copyright owners! If you are highly motivated to do so, here is a link for the detailed 2015 government report on the topic:
http://copyright.gov/orphan/reports/orphan-works2015.pdf
Yes – this impacts each and every person who creates art of any type!
You can follow this link to learn more about the current and renewed dastardly efforts being made to change the copyright laws. We highly recommend you read and understand what is happening, and take action to make the minority a majority of the collective voice of artists everywhere
http://ipaorphanworks.blogspot.com/2015/07/the-return-of-orphan-works-part-1-next.html?m=1
This would be a huge negative to any artist who has future plans to publish images. For anyone to be able
to life and print an image, any image, from an artists current, or future portfolio would not only inhibit the
artist to make a living off of his/her abilities and images, but it infringes on basically stealing ones livelihood.
How would this set with big business if all one has to do is copy they’re product and sell it without repro-
cussions ? It is completely un-fair and will be devasting for an artist to make an honest living off they’re talents.
I would assume that any potential licensee will not use unauthorized works in fear of harming their brand reputation.
Artists should always attach ownership info in the properties of a document and on the image themselves if they want to be readily found by any potential licensee.
Is there any software available to make it possible for content providers to place a digital brand in the image code.
We are unaware of any software currently available to do this. A lot of artists watermark their work when placing it on the internet. This is not always foolproof, but it does help.
Larry,
Unfortunately, too often we find that folks at all levels feel using someone else’s art, and creating a revenue stream from it, is perfectly fine. That is one of the factors included in the Orphan Works bill – trying to defend the rights of artists.
And yes – artists should always identify their art with a watermark when sharing with the world at large.
As for your software question, we are not aware of any software that can do this automatically. I think due to the nature of art, in all of its iterations, sizes and styles, individualized “marking” may be the only way to go.
Thanks a million!
Lets say I wanted to photograph works of graffiti and sell the reproduced images in the form of limited edition art prints and on limited run t-shirts how would I go about finding the artist and negotiating a royalty fee? Is there a way to make the connection between artist and entrepreneur easier?
Paul,
What an excellent question, and a nice concept! Let me stipulate that we are not attorneys, so our opinions are simply that – thoughts based on our years of experience in the art licensing industry. For a more expert opinion regarding the use of someone else’s art, you cannot go wrong by seeking out the advice of a good intellectual property attorney!
So . . . we like that you are thinking about the artists who created the works versus just taking the pictures and creating a revenue stream. Your obvious difficulty is going to be locating artists, that in this case, generally do not want to be discovered as their actions are sometimes illegal. One suggestion would be to talk to people in the area of the work you want to use, and “spread the word” that you would like to speak to them about featuring their artwork in photographs. Works are generally “signed” by the artist, and if they are popular, someone in that community can link you to them. Another option, but a much more difficult one, would be to hang out in areas that may be painted at the time of day the painting is typically done – evenings. You might also want to post a notice on or near the artwork that you are seeking them for licensing opportunities, as these artists check on their past works often. At the end of the day, though, there is no simple way to contact graffiti artists!
In general, making the connection between ans artist and a manufacturer/licensee is not so difficult as most artists are marketing themselves to be seen and discovered. You just happen to be choosing one of the most difficult identification processes in the industry!
The best of luck in your quest!