Copyright

by Ruth Barker, 31 Aug 2011

Hello,

I had a very interesting conversation yesterday with Ian Smith, Portfolio Manager for Music and IP Development at Creative Scotland.

I first came into contact with Ian a few weeks ago as a result of some conversations in relation to the Martin Creed’s new Scotsman Steps commission in Edinburgh (see the images in my previous post, below). It seems that once the work was complete, there was a question of possible copyright infringement that arose when a local business tried to use photographs of the work in their own publicity material. Ian was called upon to give advice – what are the rules in that case? The steps are located in the public sphere, so how much right does the artist retain to control how others can use the work?

It’s just one example, but sheds some light on a really complex topic of how public works exist in relation to copyright law, which is, after all, there to protect artists. So I decided to meet with Ian in order to continue the conversation and get more of a sense of how artists are affected by (and might be protected by) copyright as a field.

The first thing Ian stressed to me was that there are two really great resources that should be a first port of call to anyone trying to figure out a copyright question: The Intellectual Assets Centre and the Intellectual Property Office (both of which you can also find on PAR+RS’ links page).

I told Ian (though he probably knew already) that for artists the question of copyright pulls in two directions: we want to know how we an protect our work from others’ exploitation; but we also want to know what we are allowed to do in respect to referencing, sampling, or reproducing the works of others (how does Richard Prince for example, get away with his rephotographs?) ¹

Ian was clear in his repeated confirmation that the copyright of an image (or an object) always resides with its creator². So I guess when working with re-appropriation or collage the artist needs to be mindful of the rights of the original creator of the material they are using as source. Exactly where the lines are drawn on this, as we can see from the Richard Prince example, is still a matter that may be challenged.

I threw lots of examples at Ian (What if this? What if that?) ³ who patiently answered the questions that it was possible to answer, and didn’t make me feel a fool for asking them. It was a very useful conversation, and what really came across was just how passionate Ian is about letting artists know that they have rights in this field, and that they should take responsibility for those rights. Artists, he told me, very often don’t know what their rights are and so they can’t insist on them. Worse, they often don’t bother to know what their rights are – even though their work is often their livelihood! I could tell that this is an issue he feels strongly about.

As I was leaving, Ian said something that really stuck with me for the rest of the day. I won’t be able to phrase it as eloquently as he did, but essentially he was describing the need for all of us to foster a culture of professional respect within the creative sphere, where artists are respected for their skills. That respect, he feels, comes partly from understanding – and respecting – our professional rights.

Food for thought. If anyone does have particular copyright issues that can’t easily be solved through the links above to the IA Centre or the Intellectual Property Office, Ian said that he’d be happy to hear from you. Just contact him via Creative Scotland.

More later,

R.

¹ Except of course, that he doesn’t always get away with it

² Unless of course that creator has signed away their rights to a third party, like an agent or gallerist. But even in that case, it was within the artist’s rights to sign those rights away, if you see what I mean.

³ “What about if I make a sculpture, and you take a photograph of that sculpture? Who has copyright of the photograph?” The answer is that the photographer probably owns the copyright of the photograph, but that they would have had to acquire permission from the sculptor, or the sculptor’s representative, to take it.