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CD artwork celebrity photo question

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Kay_Lean

Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Michigan/Washington DC

Hello All, This is my first post here!

I've been asked to do artwork for a CD. The artist wants to use pictures of himself with a famous singer, recently deceased. The famous singer was a mentor/friend of the artist and the photos were taken in the artist's house together with the artist's family. The photos feature the artist and the famous singer together. Can he use the pictures in his CD artwork?

Any pointers would be appreciated.
 
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divgradcurl

Senior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Michigan/Washington DC

Hello All, This is my first post here!

I've been asked to do artwork for a CD. The artist wants to use pictures of himself with a famous singer, recently deceased. The famous singer was a mentor/friend of the artist and the photos were taken in the artist's house together with the artist's family. The photos feature the artist and the famous singer together. Can he use the pictures in his CD artwork?

Any pointers would be appreciated.
You should ask the artist to get permission from the deceased singer's family. From a copyright perspective, he can use the photo, because it's his photo -- but a good argument could be made that having the more famous singer's likeness on the CD is a commercial use of the singer's likeness, and the singer's family likely continues to retain rights to use the singer's likeness in a commercial setting.

Best bet is to seek written permission from the family, to avoid any issues in the future.
 

Kay_Lean

Junior Member
Thanks for the advice divgrad. It is my understanding that he is not on good terms with the deceased singer's family.

Does using the pictures imply endorsement or participation? Could it be argued that the pictures are a statement of fact... he did meet the famous singer and they did hang out together.
 

divgradcurl

Senior Member
Thanks for the advice divgrad. It is my understanding that he is not on good terms with the deceased singer's family.

Does using the pictures imply endorsement or participation? Could it be argued that the pictures are a statement of fact... he did meet the famous singer and they did hang out together.
No, the use does not necessarily imply endorsement, and yes, one could argue that the singer's image is used simply to show that they worked together, and not that the artist is trying to use the singer's famous likeness to help sell his CD.

But that's the key -- once you have "could it be argued," you have potential for a lawsuit. If your artist is unwilling or unable to approach the family to obtain permission to use the photo on the CD, he or she should sit down with a local attorney, who can review all of the actual facts of the situation. and can advise him on the risks he or she might be taking by using the photo without the family's permission.
 

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