Tempted to pirate and hijack another artist’s work?

Do so at the risk of possible criminal and civil prosecution!

By Theresa Franks, for Fine Art Registry®

They say imitation is the greatest form of flattery!

Uh, not when it comes to visual art.

For some artists, it’s tempting to copy other contemporary artists that are selling well or artists that they would like to emulate in style or technique. However, most artists that have suffered loss and confusion in the marketplace as a result of having their work copied do not consider “imitation” or “copying” of their work, the greatest form of flattery, not by a long shot. Rather, they will tell you that the copying of their artwork is often destructive, an all out nuisance and is considered by most artists as intellectual property theft. Some artists may not know any better and others will copy artists out of pure spite, jealousy, low self-esteem, or the absence of creativity or talent. Of course, it should be noted that there are large art dealers and publishers out there that are also in the artist copyright infringement business—but this is another article for another day.

There are many sociological and psychological reasons as to why artists copy other artists’ works. At Fine Art Registry we have witnessed firsthand a wide range of situations concerning copyright infringement and the theft of intellectual property. We’ll make it very plain: closely copying another living or recently deceased artist's work for commercial purposes (meaning to profit from it) is illegal, and the act of copying another artist’s work could result in a civil and potentially criminal violation of copyright statutes both in the U.S. and in most international jurisdictions. Ethically speaking, it is wrong and does nothing for your career as an artist, unless you want the reputation of a being scallywag. 

So, if you are one of these so-called artists that seek to intentionally leech off of successful artists by copying their work and selling it, please do yourself and all of us a huge favor: DO NOT COPY! It never works out in the end as the work is anything but authentic, is never the same quality as the original artist who created the work, and it serves to do nothing but to cause uncertainty and diminished trust in the marketplace. Worst of all, it could get you sued, criminally charged, or worse.

Fine Art Registry offers artists a solid system and database to protect their body of work by registering the work before the artwork leaves the artist’s studio and before it is ultimately sold to a collector. FAR® registrations are date stamped and time stamped so that there is no confusion as to who the true author of the work is, or when and how the work was created. Fine Art Registry artists have the confidence that what they create, register and tag (using our U.S. Patented, FAR® ID tags) in their permanent portfolio is protected against pirating and hijacking. We assist many artists who have found themselves in copyright infringement situations and as a direct result of their FAR® registrations they have prevailed on many of these issues, when otherwise they would have been without recourse.

There is nothing wrong with being influenced and inspired by other artists (living and dead); to learn from other artists, past, present and future, by implementing techniques and styles to enhance your own work. Students in art schools reproduce works of art all the time in the study of making art. After all, there is nothing new under the sun. Artists through the centuries have learned from and studied other artists which have spawned all sorts of art movements. But the deliberate, intentional act of copying another artist’s work for commercial gain is morally wrong, harmful on a variety of levels, and quite likely (depending on the circumstances) completely illegal.

The best advice for artists that may not know any better is to take the path of least resistance. Do not copy another living (or recently deceased) artist’s work!  Instead, reach down deep into your creative thought and try creating work that is uniquely your own—brand yourself and your work as an artist that is distinctive and exceptional, and like none other. If you are unsure if what you are creating infringes another artist's work, then don't do it.

There is unfortunately, on the other end of the spectrum (and we have dealt with them) those individuals that will intentionally and maliciously copy other artists’ works not so much for the commercial gain it offers (as the profit is just a bonus), but because of some psychological deficit in that individual that gives them skewed pleasure in harming another. For these hard cases, civil and/or criminal prosecution is the only answer. Many times, these desperate and delusional individuals believe they are untouchable and that they can get away with stalking artists—but in time they are ultimately caught and are shutdown, but usually not before much damage to the artist and his or her body of work has been done. In severe cases, some artists have had to file for restraining orders against individuals that cross the line from copying their artwork to full blown obsession. Yes, it happens.

Here are a few things you can do immediately if you believe your artwork is being copied and marketed commercially:

1. Document the infringement by copying all advertisements and resulting sales records (if available) of the infringed works, if possible.
2. Notify the infringer in writing (via email and by regular mail) that you are aware of the infringement and demand that they immediately cease and desist from copying your work and offering it for sale. In many cases, the infringer is anonymous and cannot be easily located or identified. These are the worst kinds of situations as you are fighting a phantom. Though the vast majority of copyright infringement occurs online, there was a report to Fine Art Registry not long ago where a visual artist walked into a large big-box craft store and noticed to her horror that her artwork had been copied and was being used in hundreds of picture frames that were being sold—all sourcing from China. She was stunned and found it extraordinarily difficult to fight copyright infringement overseas. Fortunately, Fine Art Registry was able to assist.
   
3. Copyright and permanently register your work—keeping a permanent record of your artwork’s details, including photos, title, description, medium, etc., is critically important – the more detailed you can be in your records, the better chance you have of protecting your intellectual property. It is important that this be done BEFORE you find yourself in a copyright infringement situation.
   
4. If the infringement of your work continues unabated after sufficient warning, notify the web site or web sites where copies of your artwork are being sold, advertised, or used for a commercial purpose and inform the webmasters that your intellectual property rights are being infringed. Provide as much detail of the infringement as possible. Make certain your correspondence is professional and well documented.
5. Always be diligent and jealous of your body of work. Surf the web as much as possible looking for infringement of your work. Know what “fair use” under the copyright law means and how images of your work can be used legally, and in some cases, can be beneficial to you as an artist marketing your work.
6. If the infringement continues contact a professional or Fine Art Registry for assistance.

Copyright infringement is a serious and real problem in today’s 21st century Internet age. It is therefore important that artists be cognizant and vigilant as one day you could find yourself in exactly this type of situation—and especially so if your artwork begins to rise in popularity and price. 

In the future, we will feature a couple of case studies of Fine Art Registry artists that have lived the horrors of having their work copied. Perhaps you have your own story of copyright infringement. If so, we would be happy to hear from you.