Illustration copyright

A rather interesting issue today is copyright for a painting . In this article, we will discuss some details that will definitely be useful to you. Interesting? Then read on.

Illustration copyright considerations

According to the legislation of Ukraine, art objects include:

• sculptures;
• paintings;
• pictures;
• engravings;
• lithographs;
• developments of any artistic design.

Of course, if you want to protect any of these objects, then the right way out is to register your rights.Like all other authors, the creator of fine (artistic) art has all personal non-property and proprietary copyright to his work. All these rights are established and regulated by the legislative framework of Ukraine.

The peculiarity is that the artist’s copyright contains:

• right to access;
• the right to follow;
• the right to buy out the developments.
• Let’s discuss each one separately.

Right of access

Article 26 of the Law of Ukraine “On Copyright and Related Rights” establishes the right to access objects of art.

According to this rule, during the transfer from one person to another of any work, the author, under any circumstances, has the right to demand access to his work. The purpose of such a requirement may be to reproduce materials as slides, rework, cards, etc.

The main condition in this situation is that the author’s access to the work should not violate the legitimate interests of its owner. In addition, the author cannot oblige the owner to deliver the art object.In turn, the owner has no right to refuse the author if he has no weighty arguments to do so.

The peculiarity of the right to access is that it concerns exclusively objects of fine art. Why? Because these works are distinguished by their difficulty in creating a perfect copy of the original. For example, it is very difficult to create an identical copy of a painting, most likely the original version and the copied one will not be identical. That is why, in order to replicate his artistic work, the author needs to get access to the original.

Thus, this is the whole point of the author’s right of access, which is considered exclusively personal and intangible.

Interestingly, this right can only belong to the author. Transfer or transfer to legal successors or heirs by the legislation of Ukraine is not established.

Right to Follow

Another special copyright is the right to follow. This right is enshrined in Article 448 of the Civil Code of Ukraine, as well as in Article 27 of the Law of Ukraine “On Copyright and Related Rights”.

What’s the point? So, the right to follow is the opportunity for the author of an object of art throughout his life, as well as the opportunity for his heirs to receive 5 percent of the price of each transaction related to the sale of an object of art for 70 years after his death. Such sales can be carried out through an auction, galleries, shops, museums, etc. The interest from the transactions provided for by this law is paid by the objects that carried out this sale.It is interesting that this right is regulated not only by Ukrainian legislation. Certain international legal acts also establish similar rights. The only thing is that the procedure and scope of using this feature may differ.

Right to redemption

This right to an object of art is enshrined in Article 12 of the Law of Ukraine “On Copyright and Related Rights”.According to the law, copyright and property rights regarding the material object in which the art materials are displayed are not mutually related. The destruction of an object that contains the original materials of art does not mean the destruction of all copyrights (in this case, the moral rights of the author).

If the owner of a material object, in which the original version of an object of art is displayed, has a desire to get rid of and destroy the work, he is initially obliged to offer the author to redeem the materials back. The value of the object in this situation should not exceed the amount of materials that were used in the initial creation of the work.

If it is not possible to redeem an object that contains the original of art (for example, because the work is a fresco on the wall), then the author must be given the opportunity to create a copy of his work in the form necessary for this.

Copyright Registration Procedure

Pictures copyright can be registered in the manner that is governed by Ukrainian law. To do this, you will need to draw up and submit an Application, which contains a request for registration of the copyright object. Registration and registration of this copyright is carried out 2-3 months from the date of filing an application with Ukrpatent. At the end of the entire procedure, you will be provided with a “Certificate of Copyright Registration for the Work”. This document is protected by the state.

What documents are required for registration?

Be prepared in advance that you will need the following documents:

• an object of fine art in electronic format;
• full information about the author of the work (full name, date of birth, address);
• a well-defined name for the object;
• indicate the exact date of creation of the object of fine art;
• write several sentences (in the form of an abstract) that will reveal the description of your work.

Who can copyright a work?

Individuals such as:

• author, artist, designer, etc. (individual);
• several authors who worked in a group on the same piece (individuals);
• a legal entity, when the original authors are employees of this organization and the creation of a work of art was part of their official duties.

Was it interesting? Find out what the copyright is for a song, photo or video.

At all times, art was highly valued, and famous artists received good monetary rewards for their paintings. Art is still popular today, especially when it comes to making money.Authors know how difficult it is sometimes to compose a composition and create a masterpiece. And it is very offensive when this idea is stolen by unscrupulous competitors. However, there is a solution – just register your rights with Ukrpatent. This procedure requires special knowledge and practical experience, so we advise you to contact an expert on intellectual property issues.

Our specialists have been providing such services for 10 years and know how to solve any situation!