Using photographs of my art without consent

[Artifexink]

I am a professional tattoo artist. Two years ago I was hired at a shop in Maryland. I signed a W2 form and nothing else. During my employment, photographs of my artwork were taken and utilized for advertising purposes. After I left the shop, my photographs still remained on their website for advertisement. The shop was recently sold along with their apparent "rights" to a new company. I do not approve of this "new company" utilizing photographs of my art for their advertising benefits. I do not want my name and artwork associated with the poor reputation of this new company. I do not feel as though my former employer could be legally compensated for me and my co-workers art work. I signed nothing upon employment giving them this permission and I do not like that my work is being used to border the line of false advertisement. Myself along with multiple former employees of the old company are very upset that our photos are being used and refusal to take them down has been stated. Can my former company legally sell photographs of my art and have them used as advertisement for a new company without my written consent? Me and the former workers are looking to file a class action, is this appropriate? What can we do?

 

[quincy]

I am a professional tattoo artist. Two years ago I was hired at a shop in Maryland. I signed a W2 form and nothing else. During my employment, photographs of my artwork were taken and utilized for advertising purposes. After I left the shop, my photographs still remained on their website for advertisement. The shop was recently sold along with their apparent "rights" to a new company. I do not approve of this "new company" utilizing photographs of my art for their advertising benefits. I do not want my name and artwork associated with the poor reputation of this new company. I do not feel as though my former employer could be legally compensated for me and my co-workers art work. I signed nothing upon employment giving them this permission and I do not like that my work is being used to border the line of false advertisement. Myself along with multiple former employees of the old company are very upset that our photos are being used and refusal to take them down has been stated. Can my former company legally sell photographs of my art and have them used as advertisement for a new company without my written consent? Me and the former workers are looking to file a class action, is this appropriate? What can we do?

If the artwork you did while you were employed by the company in Maryland was part of your job duties, the copyrights in the artwork would under most circumstances become the property of the company. The company, in other words, would be the holder of all rights in the works under a work-for-hire.

You have no control over what your former employer does with the artwork, including selling the rights they hold to another company.

This is assuming there was no agreement to the contrary between you and your former employer.