Re: question about copying art

In-Reply-To: <002601c19ac8$6fc4f500$feb7f7a5[_at_]computer> "Elizabeth Myers" <dog-fish[_at_]mindspring.com> asked:

> A client has asked my brother to create four pieces to go into an
> exhibition based on some old paintings of the Madonna.
>
> Are there copyright infractions with copying classical works of art
> such as this and putting them in an exhibition??

This could run and run - how "good" does a copy painting have to be to qualify as an infringing copy? If I create a painting with stripes that is as different as possible from all known Bridget Rileys, is it a "derivative work"?

IANAL but, Elizabeth, I see few *practical* problems, whatever jurisdiction your brother is in - so long as the artists have all been dead more than 70 years.

Will your brother be using photographic sources? I suspect some here would like to see him apply to the museums for permission to set up an easel opposite each Old Master, as art students used to do and just for the sake of a fun legal argument (for some very specialised value of "fun").

The (rather thin) copyright in the *photo* of the Old Master belonged to the photographer at the moment she triggered the shutter. Though Old Masters are by definition out of copyright, many museums make it a condition of allowing photographs to be taken on their premises that rights in the photos are assigned to them - thus protecting their postcard sales. But they'd have a hell of a time showing that your brother's reproduction came from a particular photo, unless there's only one in existence.

More fun questions to discuss: how could the US doctrine on parody apply? How can you parody a photo-of-an-Old-Master, except perhaps by exaggerating all the flaws in the lighting?

Contrariwise, what moral rights might apply if the photographer is in an Authors' Rights jurisdiction: is it possible to act in a way detrimental to the reputation of the *photographer*? Crediting the photographers would seem to be a good idea.

Mike Received on Mon Jan 14 2002 - 15:08:04 GMT