Woe to you! You thieves and imitators of other people's labour and talents. Beware of laying your audacious hand on this artwork.
— Albrecht Durer 1511

Contents
​

This site provides a reference about copyright, trademarks and brands for artists. Specifically:

Copyright law in different countries
​

Do you need an introduction to copyright for artists in a global marketplace where not all countries operate copyright law in exactly the same way?

Links to authoritative national websites, various bodies dealing with copyright matters and advice and information can be found below. These include advice on what what to do in your country if your copyright is infringed

In THE ART LEGACY section of  MONEY AND TAX you can find
  • Copyright and resale rights for heirs Copyright relating to original artwork is a valuable asset in an artist's estate. You can derive income from it for a specific period of time after the death of an artist.

What is copyright?
​

Copyright (or author’s right) is a legal term used to describe the rights that creators have over their literary and artistic works. 
- Definition of Copyright (World Intellectual Property Organisation)
Copyright is a legal right for people who create original work which allows them to protect their creative work for a specific period of time. However copyright cannot protect a concept, idea or fact. You can have an idea for a painting but you cannot copyright it until you produce it.

Copyright is a form of intellectual property. It's an an asset with a value:
  • Copyright can be licensed to third parties for the purposes of publication and reproduction - within the specific terms of the licence.
  • Copyright continues for a specific period of time after your death. This varies by country. It can be assigned to your heirs -after your death.

Copyright prevents other people exploiting your creation and making money from it. If people infringe your copyright you can bill them for your lost income.
Picture
List of different countries and the length of their standard copyright in years

Blogging about Copyright
​

These are blogs which post regularly about copyright matters
Note: I'm not a lawyer and you should not rely on any assertions I make as legal advice. I'm just an ordinary artist and writer who is trying to make sense of copyright in relation to visual art - and what artists can do if their copyright is infringed and/or others act in such a way as to create orphan works from their copyright protected artwork. These pages organises links to what seem to me to be relevant websites. If you need the help of a lawyer you should engage a professional.