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PROTECT YOUR ART WITH A COPYRIGHT
Susan Armstrong
If you have created original art, you have already taken the first step to protect it. The fact is, when you complete a painting you generated from your own imagination, or from a photo you have personally taken as a reference, you “own” the art. It is yours to keep as a single original painting, to reproduce in other forms, or to share with others who want to copy or adapt it for their
personal use.
HOW DO YOU ACQUIRE A COPYRIGHT?
It is easy to copyright your work with three simple steps. None of these require legal or financial commitments.
1. Create your original work in a tangible form. Complete your two or three-dimensional art to your satisfaction. When it is original, and completed, you own the art. Technically, it is your intellectual property from the moment it is created.
2. Sign your work. Once you have signed your name to the art, it clearly indicates your ownership. The artist’s signature on your work is more than a statement of pride, it is a confirmation of your possession of the design.
3. Place the copyright symbol on your art. This consists of the ©, followed by the word copyright, the date, and your name. So, it might appear like this: © Copyright 2022, Mary Jones.
PROTECTING YOUR WORK ON THE INTERNET
If you have an online portfolio, you should take additional precautions to protect your work.
1. Use low–resolution photos on your website. (72dpi and 600 pixels, or less).
2. Sign both sides of your art, the front, and the back, so the copyright information is there if someone “shares” your work without giving you a credit line.
3. Include a statement in the footer of your website, so it appears on every page. Here is a sample:
Copyright Notice: My images do not belong to the public domain and may not be used for any purpose without my permission. All artworks
in this portfolio are copyrighted and owned by the artist, (your name here). All rights reserved.
4. Beware of posting your artwork in social media. It is difficult,
if not impossible, to track who has seen that image or if anyone has saved it. There is also legal uncertainty around who owns an image once it is shared on social media, and your work may be shared without credit. Read the Terms and Conditions of each website you publish your work on, to determine whether your ownership
is protected.
These steps provide legal standing if you should need to sue someone for unauthorized use of your design. When another artist sees your copyright, he or she will be deterred from “borrowing” your design to use on their own work.
As an added measure, take high quality photos of your artwork and keep a digital copy, with the date it was created. You could do this in an Excel spreadsheet, with the name of the piece, the date, and a photo of the art. Or simply keep a digital photo gallery with this information below each photo. If you ever need to prove your art belongs to you, your computer’s recorded date tags will help
verify when it was created. These tips declare your ownership and
discourage theft. However, for some work, you may want the added protection of registered copyright.
16 TheDecorativePainter • SPRING 2022