Registering the copyright for your work of art is a great way to protect your intellectual property rights. Find out how registration works, how it helps you, and more.
Find out more about Copyrights
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by Jane Haskins, Esq.
Jane has written hundreds of articles aimed at educating the public about the legal system, especially the legal aspe...
Updated on: July 30, 2024 · 3 min read
Like anything else that can be copyrighted, artwork is protected by copyright when the art is affixed in a tangible form (such as a painting, sculpture, or drawing). You have to register your copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office if you want to be able to take infringers to court and be awarded damages.
Artwork is copyrightable if it meets the following criteria:
Artwork does not need to have artistic merit to receive copyright protection.
If artwork is contained in a “useful article,” the artistic elements of the article can receive copyright protection, but the utilitarian aspects may not. For example, if you design a lamp with a sculpture in its base, the sculpture can be copyrighted, but the utilitarian aspects of the lamp cannot.
If you buy a piece of artwork, you will own the art, but you will not own the copyright to it unless the artist has specifically transferred the copyright to you.
You have a copyright in your artwork as soon as it has been created and fixed in a tangible object. It does not need to be registered with the copyright office or have a copyright notice attached to receive copyright protection. A copyright lasts for the life of the artist, plus 70 years after the artist’s death.
The owner of the copyright in a piece of artwork has the exclusive right to make copies, to sell or distribute copies, to prepare derivative works based on the copyrighted artwork, and to publicly display the artwork.
Many types of artwork are entitled to copyright protection, including:
You don’t have to register your copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office to receive copyright protection. However, registration has several important advantages:
The U.S. Copyright Office requires you to submit three things to register a copyright:
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