|
 |
|
My Back to Byzantium necklace has been the target of several instances of copyright violation. |
Which of the following statements is true:
A. If
you pay someone for a class to learn a particular design, you then own the
rights to that design and can use it however you wish (i.e., to sell finished
pieces for profit).
B. If
you buy a beading pattern from an artist or a website, it's okay to make copies
of that pattern and hand them out to your friends.
C. If
a project has been published in a magazine or a book, then you automatically
have permission to make that project and sell it for profit.
D. It's
okay to copy a beading project that you saw in a photograph or in a bead shop
without giving credit to the original designer.
Time's up! Did you figure it out? If you think that none of
these statements are true, then you are absolutely correct.
A. If you pay someone for a class, then you
own the rights to that design. This is absolutely not the case. If the
class was to learn a particular beadweaving stitch (such as right-angle weave,
peyote stitch, or herringbone stitch), that doesn't mean that you now own the
rights to that beadweaving stitch. Likewise, taking a class to learn how to
create the original design of the teacher doesn't mean that ownership rights of
that design have now been transferred to you. While it's true that there's
nothing to stop you from creating and selling finished pieces of this original
design (unless that designer has a team of high-priced and high-powered
attorneys), it's just not an ethical thing to do. These teachers put their
designs out there for others to learn from, and many of them sell their own
finished pieces as a source of income.
B. If you buy a beading pattern from an artist
or a website, it's okay to make copies of that pattern and hand them out to
your friends. When you purchase a beading pattern from someone through a
website or an online selling venue such as Etsy or Artfire, you are paying to
use that pattern for your own personal use, unless otherwise specified at the
time you purchase it. That doesn't mean that you can now email a copy of that
pattern to all of your friends who you think would like a copy! It's the same
as copying a movie or a CD from a friend. Lots of people do it, but that
doesn't mean this is okay. In my opinion, it's the same as stealing from
someone who is trying to sell their handmade goods for a living.
C. If a project has been published in a
magazine or a book, then you automatically have permission to make that project
and sell it for profit. The patterns and projects that are published in
magazines such as Beadwork and Stringing are published so that you can
learn how to make that project and expand your own beadweaving and
jewelry-making skills. Personal enrichment, inspiration, and learning are the
goals here, not making a profit from someone else's design. It's always a good
idea (and the right thing to do) to ask the artist for permission before making
up copies of a design and selling it.
D. It's okay to copy a beading project that
you saw in a photograph or in a bead shop without giving credit to the original
designer. I have a good friend who designs beautiful beading patterns and
sells them to earn income. It's very distressing to her when she sees pictures
of her patterns being "shared" on various websites, or when someone posts a
picture with a description that states they copied this pattern from a
photograph. In this case, the right thing to do would be to find the artist who
designed the pattern or project and purchase a copy of the instructions from
them or buy a copy of the magazine where the project first appeared. Remember
that these artists are also trying to earn income from the sale of their
original patterns and designs.
What if your copyright has been violated?
If you discover that someone has violated your copyright of an original beadwork design, there are a few things that you can do. The first would be to send a polite but firm email or letter to the person and let them know that what they have done is unethical and possibly illegal, and tell them what actions you would like them to take to correct the situation (i.e., removing a photograph from their website or blog, purchasing a pattern or removing an item for sale from an online store or gallery).
If your letter goes ignored, you can contact an attorney who specializes in copyright and intellectual property law, but remember that an attorney will charge you, sometimes a great deal of money, just for writing a letter. It's easy for large corporations to defend their copyrights because they have the resources to retain and compensate attorneys who specialize in intellectual property law, but you may not have the same deep pockets as a corporation.
Don't let copyright violations get you down.
Just because someone has violated your copyright, don't let it stop you from creating new and better beadwork designs. The best defense we have as artists is the ability to grow and develop new ideas and new styles of work to stay one step ahead of the copycats. It doesn't feel good to have your ideas stolen and used without your permission, but unless you're able and willing to spend a lot of time and money fighting the copyright infringement, the best thing you can do in that situation is turn it around and do something positive about it.
If you're interested in learning more about copyright, ethics and beadwork, these links from Beadwork magazine will be of great interest to you:
Ethics in Beadland by Mary J. Tafoya
Ethics in Beadwork Quiz
Do the Right Thing: Copyright, Ethics and You by Marlene Blessing
Have you ever seen someone use your original design without your permission? What did you do about it? What are your thoughts about copyright, ethics and beadwork? Please share your thoughts and experiences here by leaving a comment on the blog.
Bead Happy,
Jennifer