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This is the blog of Garen Ewing, writer, illustrator and researcher, creator of the award-winning Adventures of Julius Chancer, and lover of classic film, history, humanism and karate.

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COPIES
Mon 13 Feb 2006

Every now and then I come across a copy of my work, used without permission. Sometimes it is artwork taken from my website, sometimes it is text copied and pasted wholesale on to someone else's website. I've recently seen quite a bit of my Afghan War site used to help describe ebay sales, or a little bit on Wikipedia, or just shunted into an article made of a mish-mash of others' work. I'm pretty generous when it comes to other people using my work, if they ask first. Some people even say thank you.

With artwork it is a little more complicated. I put a lot of time and effort into what I do, and the person who I'm working for has paid money so they can use the work (though I usually retain copyright). When someone else takes it without asking, it's bad form. It's not always done with malicious intent. Some people are genuinely unaware that just because the artwork is out there - on the internet, on a poster, in a book - it can be used, for free. The work's been done, someone's possibly been paid, now it's public property. Well, that's not so, I'm afraid.

Making the discovery gives me a couple of feelings. I feel bad that someone thinks my work can just be used for free, without any credit or remuneration. I also feel slightly flattered that they think it's good enough to use. I don't call in the lawyers or rant and rave and have a go at the person or company, when discovered. I usually write a pleasant email drawing their attention to the fact that they have done something that is not morally correct, and that I feel just as bad having to point this out as they probably do about hearing it. And I don't feel good doing it, but then again, I can't let it pass either.

There's a couple of examples below. My Oliver logo (in black and white) was used on what is actually a nice colourful poster. It's been flipped and Oliver has been given a little peaked cap, but it is my logo. Mine was designed in the late nineties, well before the recent Oliver film which has also used a similar 3-person silhouette (but quite different). I'm less worried about the more amateur copy of my Sweeny Todd poster, partly because they've gone to the trouble of redrawing it (and no, that isn't normally a viable excuse!), and partly because it was for a very small amateur production (I didn't write to them about that one).

Artists and writers don't always just 'knock these things out', which is often assumed. I have a talent for drawing, but I still work my soul out at the drawing table, and that talent is the result of years of sitting in front of a piece of paper and practising and practising. The original Sweeny poster I actually drew and painted twice, as the original was sold at auction to help fund the show. I was then asked for another to put in the lobby - it was never actually used for publicity purposes in the end! I spent many hours on them. The Oliver logo may look pretty simple, and it is, but it had a huge number of rough sketches going back and forth before the client was happy.

posted 13.02.06 at 3:39 pm in Work | permalink |

Comments:

Gopher, on Tuesday 14 February 2006 at 9:18 pm, says:
I sympathise completely. I've had the same done to some of my written works but as I use an alias it is sometimes hard to argue the point. The more common plagiarism comes when I develop new technologies. I've had many people take my developments and re-label them as their own. I generally get no replies to letters or e-mails and the work remains in use. Two weeks ago it happened again with an ex-client taking a web site I had developed, removing all of my copyright from it and replacing it with their own copyright. Most of what I create is either artistic or common public license but some isn't - this particular site wasn't and our contract was terminated months ago. It even states that all technology and style is owned by my company should our agreement end. Still, I really cannot be bothered to communicate any further with them - they were hard work when they were clients.

Garen, on Wednesday 15 February 2006 at 10:03 am, says:
That sounds like wilful theft of your work. Horrible feeling.

Gopher, on Wednesday 15 February 2006 at 9:16 pm, says:
It is. It's hardly a good feeling to have to provide NDAs for every project I work on. One of my pieces of work was even taken by an unnamed corporate software house - I still don't feel the flattery though.

PaulHD, on Thursday 16 February 2006 at 6:39 pm, says:
Grim stuff. Nothing like this has happened to me, mainly because very little of my work get's seen, but it's stories like these make me nervous.

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