Who owns the copyright to the paintings of artists such as Da Vinci, Monet, van Gogh, Raphael and Rembrandt?

Question

When it comes to art, the UK patent office website says:

"The creator of the work will be the author and first owner and copyright will last for life of the author plus 70 years.

Copyright is, however, a form of intellectual property which, like physical property, can be bought or sold, inherited or otherwise transferred, wholly or in part. So, some or all of the economic rights may subsequently belong to someone other than the first owner."

For the artists I've mentioned and those like them, the 70 year rule has expired but has anyone else taken over the copyright of their works?

I've seen numerous prints of paintings by these artists, as well as books, t-shirts, mugs etc that are based on one or more paintings of those I've mentioned, all available to buy in various shops and on-line.

Did the people selling these products have to ask for permission to use them commercially or are the works of these artists available to the public to be used by anyone in any way?

Answer 1

They are probably licensed by the museum that holds the original artwork

Answer 2

No item can be subject to copyright 70 years after the death of the artist/first owner. The item enters the public domain and can be copied freely without permission or penalty.

So, to answer your question, no-one owns the copyright to the work of these artists - they can only own the item - because copyright no longer applies.

The second paragraph of your quote applies only whilst the creator (artist) is alive plus 70 years from date of death, and during that time can be transferred by way of gift, inheritance or sale.

Answer 3

The rights are held by the museum or owner of the work. If you look at copies of say a da Vinci drawing for example (I've actually handled many of the originals), they are stamped with the mark of the museum where they now reside. Images are printed/ include inbooks etc by the kind permission of the museum or owner. Individuals can apply for a licence to reprint these images.

Answer 4

You don’t need to be a lawyer to be a painter, but you do need to know one legal term—copyright. To all creative artists--poets, painters, novelists, dancers, directors, actors, musicians, singers, and songwriters -- the term matters dearly.

Copyright is more than a term of intellectual property law that prohibits the unauthorised duplication, performance or distribution of a creative work. To artists, "copyright" means the chance to hone their craft, experiment, create, and thrive.

museums protect the copyright of their items by prohibiting photographs of the originals, partly to preserve them from too much LUX (light - esp UV light) but mainly to allow them to sell reproductions of the originals, which as a photograph, is copyrighted, thus under their control.

in this way it is OK for an individual to download an image, but to publish or use that image in a commercial manner would violate the copyright laws.

Answer 5

Hi,

As you know copyright expires 70years after the creators death, anybody after that wishing to use the material must come to an appropriate financial agreement with the 'owners'/ keepers of that property, but do not have to get contractual copyright permission. The public can, for example, use a play without breaching any legalities by performing to a non-paying audience. i hope that helps a bit, only just began studying it.

Answer 6

About the specific artists you've mentioned no one owns the copyright to their works because all creative works, be they of art, music, writing, etc., that were completed before the international copyright laws were re-written and enacted upon fall under the category of public domain. Public domain allows access to all non-copyrighted works.

Example: Anyone from your Aunt Martha to myself can perform and record Beethoven's 9th. without having to pay one penny of royalties to the decedents of Beethoven. Likewise, we can reproduce poor old Leonardo's Last Supper until we've had our last supper because these great works were created before the copyright laws were amended to provide rights ensured by the decedents.

I wouldn't go around selling a reproduction of a Picasso or Warhol without getting permission from their estate because their works are fully protected. But 'Starry Night' is now owned by the world.

Answer 7

I don't know but with modern artists they have copies done of their paintings but they are signed by them thus making them worth money,(limited editions) then there is open editions which are unsigned copies and worth bugger all. Therefore I'm not sure copywright applies as if you copied a Monet it wouldn't be worth anythign anyway.This ia a guess as modern artists donlt seem to have copyright, unless their copyright is if someone copies them by paingint a picture the same as theirs and passing it off as their own this is where copyright comes in if you know what I mean.

Answer 8

I've researched my anecdote in order to verify it; but alas, was not terribly successful. Perhaps another user may be able to substantiate it. It concerns the world premiere of Richard Strauss's opera, "Salome", and one renowned conductor, Arturo Toscanini. He, Toscanini wanted very much to conduct it. But it seems that he and the composer could not come to an agreement regarding financial remuneration: in other words, neither would agree to the terms of the other - and as a result, poor Arturo lost out. He did however, conduct the Italian premiere of this now very famous opera. Alberich edit:-"piano_ca": The English word for "Wein" is "Vienna": the capitol of Austria.

Answer 9

The museum or owner of the work owns the copyright.

Answer 10

I don't know who owns the copyright but they are owned and so yes sales of these items are subjected to having to get permission.