A discussion has raged on a mail list I belong to. Someone asked if it were okay to make designs published in project books, and sell them.
Some people think the project books are made for this use. Others think the projects are meant as teaching guides only, and the designs are still protected. Another fierce debate on copyright looms....
I hesitate to get into any conversation about copying, copyright, selling work made from book projects, etc.
But since my work has appeared in books and magazines,
AND I've published instructions on some of my techniques,
AND I've created projects for books,
AND I've had my work copied,
maybe it IS time to say how I feel about it.
I hate it when someone copies my work.
I won't address the legal issues. I've read a LOT about this, and still don't feel competent to advise anyone on copyright law.
I can tell you this:
I've been inspired by others who share their techniques, and try to share mine, within reason.
I've taken techniques developed by others and modified them GREATLY to create a different look.
I've taken techniques developed by others and used them to create totally different WORK, to create a body of work based on a personal story that is my own.
I've been inspired by a new shape used by another artist, or a new design element, or a new color combination, or a finishing technique, and incorporated it into my designs, using different materials, aesthetics, etc.
Occasionally I've deliberately attempted to copy a design (more usually, part of a design) to figure out how the artist was working. Those pieces never leave my studio. They do not carry my signature. They are never exhibited or sold. When someone asks about them in my studio, I say they are study pieces and not for sale. Period.
On learning a technique in class....
When I juried into my state guild (the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen), I TOLD them I'd taken a class on fabric collage and texture quilting from another guild artist. They said yes, they could see that--but that I had also used the technique to create NEW WORK that looked nothing like that artist.
In other words, the techniques were simply tools to create my own work based on my own personal vision. And that was the perfect outcome of taking a class and learning a technique from another artist. You can judge for yourself, and see Susan Carlson's beautiful fabric collage work here: http://www.susancarlson.com/
More recently, someone tried to jury into an organization I belong to with jewelry directly copied from my work. Not just my technique (which is one I've never published or shared), but also my designs. Right down to the finishing techniques. I was amazed at how much of my work had been duplicated--except they were made with cheaper materials and badly done.
The person was not even accepted for jurying, but I was still appalled. There was absolutely nothing original about the work--EVERYTHING about it had been copied from my work. Did she think she could "fool" the jurors (all of whom know me and my work)? Did she think I wouldn't notice if she HAD juried in and started selling her work? What if down the road we ended up in booths next to each other? Did she think I wouldn't mind??
The mind boggles.
This is harsh, I know, but I felt like the person was intellectually lazy. Letting me come up with the ideas, doing all the developmental work, building a market for my work, spending the time and money to make and sell my work--and she thought she could just copy my designs and jury into our prestigious guild with that.
I just cannot understand this attitude. This is my opinion. I am not speaking for all artists. I just cannot tell you how disturbing that was to me.
Regarding the projects in books and magazines:
We know when we write them that people are going to take that for permission to copy those designs. So most of us try to choose designs we are either done with, or developed especially for that book.
Some artists really don't care--they know their work is so intricate and difficult that people CAN'T really duplicate the work well. Or it's a technique they are so done with. Kathleen Dustin is a good example. Her work is often copied, never replicated. You can see Kathleen's polymer clay work here: http://www.kathleendustin.com/
I thought I could share a technique and make it clear I expect people to use it as a springboard for their own artistic development, thus avoiding the pitfall of being copied.
However, this backfired in an article I wrote for a magazine a few years ago. I described the technique, and then developed a few projects. I specifically stated in the article that I hoped people would not copy my original designs, but use the technique to develop their own work based on their own story and artistic vision.
But the layout people used examples of my work in the article that were not included in the projects. And people sent in copies of those examples! The magazine published them, too.
I still have qualms about writing that article.
On the other hand, there are some jewelry designs that are hard NOT to duplicate. It seems like there are thousands of jewelry designers stringing semi-precious stone beads with Bali silver and claiming their work is original and unique.
So I think it's okay to be inspired by a certain color combination in a project, or to get an idea for a new clasp, or a new way of combining components. It's okay to use the project to learn a technique.
There is probably not much I can do in the larger scheme of things to stop people from copying my work. I also know it's human nature to imitate what we admire. And I know although some people do it in a calculated way, there are also people who genuinely think they are paying me a compliment by doing it.
I'm just sharing how it feels on this side of the fence.
