Lizzy
I
have seen no responses to your enquiry on the list, though you might have had
some privately. I offer a few thoughts therefore, even though it is now
Tuesday. I’m afraid I was out until today.
The
copyright in the paintings will expire 70 years after the end of the year in
which the artist died. If that was during the Second World War expiry cannot be
far off and might already have happened.
The
existence of a new copyright in photographs of the paintings is uncertain. Many
such images will merely be copies and will attract no new copyright to
themselves. What is required is that the photographs are new intellectual
creations that express the personality of their authors. This requires, for a
facsimile image, quite a significant degree of skill and artistry, using
lighting, filtration and exposure together perhaps with subsequent darkroom
manipulation. Put simply, a picture taken by a member of the public using a
hand-held camera when visiting a gallery is most unlikely to qualify but a
professional image using tripod, careful lighting and other facilities might do
(but might not).
If
there is a copyiright in the photographs it will belong (assuming that they
were taken after 1989) to the photographer, unless he was working as an
employee for instance of the newspaper. The newspaper will not otherwise own
any rights in the photographs. It will own the copyright in the text of any
accompanying article. It seems unlikely that there would be any infringement of
the newspaper’s copyright in the typographical arrangement of the page, since
you are dealing only with a clipping not with a full page, and in any case
reproduction solely of the pictures could not infringe that copyright.
The
owner of the paintings owns no rights in them, unless the copyright was
assigned or bequeathed to him or her by the artist.
You
may not supply copies of the images unless you have permission from the
copyright owner(s), ie the owner of the artist’s copyright (unless it has already
expired) and the owner of any copyright in the photographs. Thus, if the artist
died in 1941 or earlier and you conclude that the photographs are not new
artistic works you may go ahead and supply the copies, but you should bear in
mind that others might disagree about the quality of the photographs.
Tim
------------------
Tim
Padfield
Copyright
Officer and Information Policy Consultant
The
National Archives, Kew, Richmond, Surrey TW9 4DU
+44
(0)20 8392 5381
www.nationalarchives.gov.uk
PLEASE NOTE: Any advice given must not be treated as
legal advice, for which professional advice should be sought
.
From: Archivists, conservators and records
managers. [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Elizabeth
Baker
Sent: 13 July 2012 15:17
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Friday Copyright Query
Dear
all,
I have a bit of a Friday
copyright query which has come to us from our museums service. It's a little
bit of a convoluted story:
2 paintings of a pub
interior painted by a local artist in the 1930's. The artist died in the Second
World War. The paintings were apparently bought at a local auction in the
1970s. In 2006 photographs of the 2 paintings appeared in a local paper - but the
owner of the paintings wished to remain anonymous. The newspaper articles were
cut out and added to a file of photographs and newspaper clippings in the
local studies library. We inherited this folder after our merger. The museums
service has now asked for permission to scan the newspaper clippings and use
the photographs of the posters in an exhibition.
I'm sure I could figure
this out if it wasn't a Friday afternoon! -Who has the copyright of the
photographs of the paintings in the newspaper?
Any help or advice
gratefully received,
Many thanks,
Lizzy
Lizzy Baker
Public Services Officer
East Riding of Yorkshire Archives and Local Studies Service
County Hall
Beverley
HU17 9BA
Tel: (01482) 392790
E-mail: [log in to unmask]
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