Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

With Legal Gray Areas, Art Heists Go Digital

Point-and-click age makes for murky copyright arguments

By Wesley Oliver, Newser Staff

Posted Jan 30, 2009 3:56 PM CST

(Newser) – A disconnect between the artistic and legal communities is reigniting the debate over copyright infringement, the Wall Street Journal reports. The law says an artist can adapt an existing work only if the resulting piece is “transformative,” or provides a new spin. “It’s meant to be a gray area,” explained an attorney. “The copyright law is designed to be flexible.” But in an age of easy downloads, the issue is coming to a head.

Complicating matters is the notion of trying to apply legal definitions to the not-so-firm artistic definition of what it means to transform something. When is it a legitimate move in the name of art and when is it just stealing? “It is very much a visual thing, and there is no bright line that artists can go by,” said the attorney. Over the last 20 years, judges have favored artistic license, but another copyright lawyer warns, “Maybe it has gone too far.”

[Images (2)]

[Quotes (2)]

Artist Jeff Koons has been sued twice by photographers for copyright infringement, the first time in 1989 in a case that he lost and the second time where he prevailed. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

In these days of "sampling" and point-and-click downloading, new battles are raging over what constitutes copyright infringement. (Shutter Stock)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

The law states that the use of a copyrighted image is transformative based on the ordinary lay observer's sense of if the new work is different and how different it is. - John Koegel, lawyer

Where derivativeness ends and transformative begins is not at all clear. - Robert J. Kasunic, principal legal adviser, U.S. Copyright Office

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

To report an error on this story, notify our editors.

More Newser Stories

Prince Sues Over 'Grotesque' Versailles Art

Takashi Murakami says his works highlight palace's fanciful style

(NEWSER) - Off with their heads! A descendant of King Louis XIV is suing the managers of Versailles for a "vile" modern art exhibit in the hallowed halls of the famous abode of French royalty. Prince Sixte-Henri de Bourbon-Parme has taken the action to jettison Japanese pop artist Takashi Murakami's cartoon characters, fiberglass balls, and giant golden Buddha because they sully "supreme good French taste" and show no respect for the glory of Versailles. "There are puppets in that exhibition that are frankly grotesque," he said. "These works undermine the unity of style of the museum." The exhibit, which opened last month in Versailles, has been slammed by several critics. More»

Recovered $50M Van Gogh Actually ... Still Missing

'Poppy Flowers' was taken from museum in Egypt

(NEWSER) - Despite reports of a quick recovery , a $50 million Vincent van Gogh painting is still missing from Egypt's Mahmoud Khalil Museum. The minister of culture said police confiscated the artwork, known as Poppy Flowers or Vase With Flowers, at an airport in Cairo from an Italian couple just hours after it was stolen, but he has now backtracked and says that announcement was based on "false and incorrect" information. Faulty surveillance cameras (only 7 of 43 were working), lax security, and a busted alarm system helped enable the theft, the AP reports . More»

Strapped Art Market Preps for Auctions

Expectations low as auction houses try variety of tactics

(NEWSER) - After a 7-year boom, art auction houses are struggling as collectors hit hard by the recession close their wallets. Sotheby’s predicts it will pull in $179 million to $256 million at spring sales, compared to $742 million a year ago. As the spring events approach, auctioneers are employing an array of strategies to restore the market, the Wall Street Journal reports. More»

Brazil Thieves Nab 2 Picassos

Second time in weeks that Sao Paulo criminals have stolen Pablo's work

(NEWSER) - Picasso remains the artist of choice for the criminal elite of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Three armed robbers made off with two of his prints—The Painter and the Model and Minotaur, Drinker and Women—from a city museum today, Reuters reports. The robbery comes just weeks after thieves nabbed Picasso's Suzanne Bloch painting from a different city museum. More»

Sculpture Thieves Seek Scrap Metal

Commodity prices driving thefts; more artists steering clear

(NEWSER) - A wave of sculpture thefts has little to do with the pieces’ artistic merit: Police believe they’ve been stolen for their valuable copper content, the Wall Street Journal reports. In the past 18 months, three public artworks displayed in Brea, Calif., have disappeared—and the trend is appearing across the country, pushing some artists to consider dropping bronze as a medium. More»

NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS

What is Newser?

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser, we choose the most thought-provoking and entertaining stories from hundreds of US and international sources and reduce them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »

Partnering with: Slate

View Newser on the mobile website

With Legal Gray Areas, Art Heists Go Digital