original art inspired by copyrite art, how does the law apply?

[Malice]

What is the name of your state? Mississippi

I am a small time pyrography artist. I burn original art onto wood and sell it on my website. A piece I have on my website now is what I consider to be original art inspired by another artists work. To be more specific.... I have created a wood plaque with a fairy on it. The fairy is inspired by world famous fantasy artist Amy Brown. I looked thru many of her works and found a fairy that I really liked. LOOKING at this picture I redrew this fairy using only her body style and positioning on the original Amy Brown piece, then creating all of the rest of the details on my own, such as face, hair and wings, but mimicking the styles she uses regularly, because well, I learned to draw looking at works of hers and others like her.

My finished product burned onto wood could very well pass for something Amy Brown COULD have drawn, but didnt, and in my website description I list her as an "Amy Brown INSPIRED" fairy. Now I have a retailer wanting to commission this particualr design on a massive scale for her store, and i'm wondering if any copyright laws could come back to haunt me once this piece goes public on this well known retail site.

All of what I have read on copyrite laws pertains to direct copying, or distributing of original artwork, in this case it is my own work inspired by one of my favorite artists. I'm unclear on how the law applies to my situation.

Thank you for your time and any advice.
Malice

 

[divgradcurl]

All of what I have read on copyrite laws pertains to direct copying, or distributing of original artwork, in this case it is my own work inspired by one of my favorite artists. I'm unclear on how the law applies to my situation.

Well, copyright pertains to more than just "direct copying" -- if it didn't, then it would be pretty easy to defeat copyright protection by simply making a few changes to the original work.

It is certainly okay to be "inspired" by another artist's work to create your own original pieces -- the problem is when you receive too much inspiration, and actually create a "derivative work" -- that is, a work that is not merely "inspired" by another's work, but is actually "derived" from another's work. Creating a derivative work without the copyright holder's permission is copyright infringement.

Now, whether or not YOUR artwork would be considered infringing or not is unfortunately not something that can be handled via the internet -- you really need to talk with a local attorney who has experience in copyright law who can review your work and the artist's work and give you a legal opinion as to whether or not you are infringing or not. If you are on the verge or possibly making some real money on this work, a few hundred bucks spent on a lawyer now would be good insurance.

 

[Malice]

Seems like a very fine line there between "derived" and "inspired". There is the potential to make a few hundred dollars off this one deal, but I don't want to be teetering on any legal lines so I think I will just save myself the hassle and offer a different design alternative. I know my work is original, but everyone who has commented on the piece thinks it has to be a copy of one of her works because I mimic her style so well. Like I said before, I taught myself to draw by looking at her work.

What confused me so much regarding this issue was I once copied as closely as I could a piece by another famous fantasy artist onto a wood plaque, just to keep for myself (i'm pretty sure that falls under infringement, but it was never going to leave my home). When someone saw it in my home and begged to buy it from me, I told them I would not sell it because I loved it too much. They then asked if they could pay me to create another one just like it and I emailed the original artist asking her if it was infringing to do so considering i'd be paid for it. I sent her pictures of the piece, it really is almost exact. She emailed me back saying that she thought that was fine, she considered it to be and i quote "an original piece of art inspired by my work".

It seems strange though, the way the law works in this situation. I know if they prosecuted every person whoever redrew their favorite picture or comic book character, or a new picture based on someone elses idea...there would be many fewer artists in the world.

I thank you for your advice.
Bright Blessings
Malice

 

[divgradcurl]

What confused me so much regarding this issue was I once copied as closely as I could a piece by another famous fantasy artist onto a wood plaque, just to keep for myself (i'm pretty sure that falls under infringement, but it was never going to leave my home). When someone saw it in my home and begged to buy it from me, I told them I would not sell it because I loved it too much. They then asked if they could pay me to create another one just like it and I emailed the original artist asking her if it was infringing to do so considering i'd be paid for it. I sent her pictures of the piece, it really is almost exact. She emailed me back saying that she thought that was fine, she considered it to be and i quote "an original piece of art inspired by my work".

Well, I would guess that most artists would be flattered that another artist was taking such inspiration from their work, and that if you asked permission, then this might even be a typical response. The problem is that legally, the artists do have some say -- even if most of them would never use it -- and you only have to have one artist who wants to protect their "style" and then you have an infringement lawsuit on your hands... That's why it is good to get your legal ducks in a row before shopping your work out -- maybe most artists would never care, or would be flattered, but like I said, it only takes one to make your day miserable...

It seems strange though, the way the law works in this situation. I know if they prosecuted every person whoever redrew their favorite picture or comic book character, or a new picture based on someone elses idea...there would be many fewer artists in the world.

That's very true. The fact is, anyone can draw anything they want, and there is no problem with that. The problem comes in when someone tries to sell, or otherwise commercially exploit, the drwaings that they made -- once you get to that point, you start to impact on the original artist's market for their own work, and that's where people start to enforce copyrights.