Is it illegal to sell fanart?

Question

I know that you're not allowed to claim a copyrighted character as your own, but you can claim the drawing that you created as your own. Is it illegal to sell fanart? I was under the impression that it would be, because the companies make no money off the fact that you're selling work based on their copyrighted characters. But then I went to a convention recently and all the artists/exhibitors are selling their fanart prints and no one questions it.

Answer 1

my sister has lots of customers for fanart...

and in anime expo, lots of the artists at the artist alley sells fanart...

so i take it that it's not illegal....

Answer 2

It is, technically, illegal to sell fanart of a copyrighted material. That is, without the agreement with the copyright holder. Many artists pay a fee to copyright holders, or it's been previously stated that it's alright to sell the art (if you've seen people selling at a convention, one of these is most likely the case). There are, believe it or not, some copyright holders that will tolerate fans selling their works of art for a profit, but most of them do not.

Some people go ahead and sell their things anyway, reguardless of copyright. Some people get around on the technicality that what they're drawing is intellectual property and they are charging for the time they spent on a commission only. Either way, nothing can be done about this type of copyright infringement until a Cease and Desist order is filed, so many artists might feel they're safe to sell until they're told not to. This is the "better to beg forgiveness than ask permission" philosophy you may have heard of. ;)

You can read more about copyright laws at the links provided.

Answer 3

This Site Might Help You.

RE:
Is it illegal to sell fanart?
I know that you're not allowed to claim a copyrighted character as your own, but you can claim the drawing that you created as your own. Is it illegal to sell fanart? I was under the impression that it would be, because the companies make no money off the fact that you're selling work based...

Answer 4

I would venture to guess that it is indeed illegal (though copyright law is ridiculous and unwieldy), but I too have seen it sold many places--heck, I've even bought it. It seems to be one of the things that flies under the radar...I'd guess that if it came up in court, the artist could always claim artistic license and that it could be interpreted as that character, but that's not necessarily who it is. Still seems a fine line to walk, though.

Answer 5

Can You Sell Fan Art

Answer 6

1.The atrist who transcribe other artist work are not copying they are transcribing,which is not the same,so the copywritten work is not infringed.
2.copying and signing work passing off as the original is an offence in law.
3.by transcribing you alter the work slightly by medium, by style by subject. then make prints from your work.
so no law is broken clearly there is an issue of originality, notwithstanding fans of artist are getting conned if they think that the second original is done by the artist of the first original.

Pablo Piccasso transcribed work when he painted over images on glass by Braque whom he shared a studio with. Braque at that time was experimenting with photographic plates. regards LF

Answer 7

The works are clearly infringing, both of copyright and of trademark. However, the artists -- as you correctly indicate -- are often quite tolerant of this sort of thing, because they are loathe to attack their most devoted fans. If you're making money doing it, you're increasing your chances of getting told to stop. Whether you do or not, though, will depend on how aggressively the copyright holders choose to defend their rights.

Answer 8

The answer is YES IT IS ILLEGAL, unless you have the express written permission of the original copyright holder of the character, setting ect...

However many people do it anyway and unless you are stupid enough to do it publicly you won't get caught. Please read the second link.