Kheria, Smita --- "Visual arts: artists’ voices from the field" [2018] ELECD 189; in Brown, E.L. Abbe; Waelde, Charlotte (eds), "Research Handbook on Intellectual Property and Creative Industries" (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2018) 159

Book Title: Research Handbook on Intellectual Property and Creative Industries

Editor(s): Brown, E.L. Abbe; Waelde, Charlotte

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

ISBN: 9781786431165

Section: Chapter 15

Section Title: Visual arts: artists’ voices from the field

Author(s): Kheria, Smita

Number of pages: 24

Abstract/Description:

Is copyright relevant to the everyday lives of visual artists? Is it valuable to them? With an emphasis on artists’ relationship with copyright this chapter focuses on visual arts and presents thematic findings from new empirical research funded by Research Councils UK through the research programme of CREATe. Drawing upon original qualitative data, it examines the role of copyright in visual artists’ practices. Analysis of interviews conducted with fine and contemporary artists and illustrators demonstrates that the relevance of the internal aspect of copyright (the ability to exploit rights for monetary return) can vary significantly both across creative disciplines and individual practices. Similarities in artists’ experimentations, in sustaining precarious portfolio-based careers, are identified. The chapter shows that creators’ relationships with copyright are complex and highlights the value of the external aspect of copyright (the artist’s ability to exclude others from use of their works), an aspect that is often ignored.