Please tell me if this is illegal?

Question

I really get inspired by other artists work and do my own renditions of some of their peices....
IF I were to sell one with my signature (NOT THEIRS as i know that would be illegal) and it being clearly stated that it is my art inspired by that artist, is that legal????

Please state Legal or Illegal...and a reasonish

I mainly work of graffiti artists and my favorite is Miss Van, I am unsure if she is copyrighted, i live in usa and she is from france but shows her art in america too

Answer 1

I love how people answer questions with their own uninformed opinion. The questioner sees ten different opinions and is none the wiser.

The short answer is that you have the right to do this only for images that are in the public domain.

Under U.S. law, nothing created before 1922 is protected by copyright.

However, if the painting is protected by copyright, only the copyright holder has the right to create derivative works. You are only allowed to do this, and especially to profit from it, if you are granted permission by the holder.

You may decide that the copyright holder is unlikely to enforce their rights. However, you would be wise to be careful in this regard.

Answer 2

If the artist is still living, it's always nice and polite to check with him/her. Some people are completely anal about someone "stealing" their work -- and even if what you are doing is legal, they can still cause problems with nuisance lawsuits. Other artists will be flattered, and may even give you some tips and help.

If it's out of copyright, the artist is dead, and the estate no longer has control of the image. You are free to do what you like, but be aware some people will be snooty and snobbish about it.

If you are not sure if it's copyrighted or not, either do the research, or find something else to paint.

I believe if you do those for your own pleasure, and don't sell it, it's not illegal -- it's an important part of learning, as a matter of fact.

For the best advice, see if your local college has an art department, and if they have a class on law that relates to the arts. You might be able to take it (or audit it) and learn a lot!

Good luck!

Answer 3

There is such a thing as “Artistic License”, where you can argue that your work was inspired by theirs, but in a court of law you would probably loose.

Plus, and this is the most important part… you don’t want to be known as an artist with out any creativity of your own.

You should strive to make work other people want to copy, not the other way around.

Answer 4

well here is a straight answer...

if you are not copying exectly u are safe...if you state that you are inspired by some xyz artist....

but ethically you should take permission from that artist that you want to sell an artwork which is smthng similar to his/her artwork....

but dont copy exect art of any artist...
u know when you are inspired you make something better then original...not the same...so as far as you a creative you can get inspiration form anyone and add your own ideas and sell your work...that will be your work...
but always be wise and cradit original artist from whom you are inspired.....

Answer 5

Anything a person makes is copyrighted. Automatically. They don't HAVE to send anything to the patent office.
I wouldn't sell something that I copied from someone else. You can do it to practice, but only sell your own stuff.
Miss Van or whoever could totally sue you and win.

Answer 6

Even if you do not create an exact copy, you are probably copying their art technique or idea. Which is also illegal.

A good rule of thumb to follow is that your rendition reminds a person of another piece of art, you are already in a gray zone, and best to be avoided.


Rob

Answer 7

If your artwork is inspired and not a direct duplicate of another artists work, then you should be fine. I watched an episode of master minds where a man was having people duplicate masterpieces and he would turn around and sell them as the orginal. Took the police a while but they finally nabbed him.

Answer 8

i'm no lawyer, but i imagine it would have to depend on how similar it was, and what piece it is. pieces that are pre-copyright you can flat out copy so long as you don't sell it as an original work. that's how you can buy clipart packages with famous art in it from the pre-1920's. anything after that i imagine it would have to be something that wasn't blatant plagiarism.

Answer 9

Sure. It's done all the time, in all of the arts. If you want to feel truly better about it, write "A Tribute to Leroy Neiman" or whoever it is along with your signature so everyone understands.

Answer 10

Pls state the Country, If he has the copy rights and registered
then its illegal. Mention which country??