Comments on: comedies & tragedies of fair use http://lquilter.net/blog/archives/2006/04/30/comedies-tragedies-of-fair-use a reality-based, fantasy-influenced journal on information, autonomy & the world Thu, 05 Mar 2009 20:03:16 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Michele Markstein http://lquilter.net/blog/archives/2006/04/30/comedies-tragedies-of-fair-use/comment-page-1#comment-32668 Michele Markstein Mon, 08 May 2006 12:43:44 +0000 http://lquilter.net/blog/archives/2006/04/30/comedies-tragedies-of-fair-use#comment-32668 As strange as it may seem, artists like Cynthia Turner may have something to learn from how scientists treat their cherished published work. The issue here is not copyright--scientists still tend to sign away their rights to journals--but instead something much deeper than copyright--control of the physical materials produced and invented by the scientist for the production of the published work. Typically when a scientist publishes a paper, they sign an agreement that they will make all the tools they created and used in the work freely available to other (competing) academic researchers. Scientists agree to this practice not merely for the pedestrian reason that others may want to verify the work, but rather because others want to extend the work. This is because scientific publications are not end points but instead they are like torches being passed from one scientist to another in the marathon effort to advance knowledge and understanding. A good measure of success in science is not simply how many papers are published or where they are published, but instead, how often a published work is cited--how often it has been passed as a torch from one scientist to another. I suggest that Cynthia Turner and other artists consider this communal aspect of publishing: published works should not be thought of as end points in themselves, but rather as contributions to a growing body of thought and knowledge that advances human culture. If an artist is lucky enough to have their work commented on--by say a "derivative work"--then the original artist should perhaps consider it a great honor. As strange as it may seem, artists like Cynthia Turner may have something to learn from how scientists treat their cherished published work. The issue here is not copyright–scientists still tend to sign away their rights to journals–but instead something much deeper than copyright–control of the physical materials produced and invented by the scientist for the production of the published work. Typically when a scientist publishes a paper, they sign an agreement that they will make all the tools they created and used in the work freely available to other (competing) academic researchers. Scientists agree to this practice not merely for the pedestrian reason that others may want to verify the work, but rather because others want to extend the work. This is because scientific publications are not end points but instead they are like torches being passed from one scientist to another in the marathon effort to advance knowledge and understanding. A good measure of success in science is not simply how many papers are published or where they are published, but instead, how often a published work is cited–how often it has been passed as a torch from one scientist to another. I suggest that Cynthia Turner and other artists consider this communal aspect of publishing: published works should not be thought of as end points in themselves, but rather as contributions to a growing body of thought and knowledge that advances human culture. If an artist is lucky enough to have their work commented on–by say a “derivative work”–then the original artist should perhaps consider it a great honor.

]]> By: joy garnett http://lquilter.net/blog/archives/2006/04/30/comedies-tragedies-of-fair-use/comment-page-1#comment-32516 joy garnett Fri, 05 May 2006 17:03:56 +0000 http://lquilter.net/blog/archives/2006/04/30/comedies-tragedies-of-fair-use#comment-32516 Cynthia et al., It is important that you understand this: Susan and photographers like her exercise fair use when shooting photographs of other people's intellectual property, of people and places without ever having to ask their permission. Documentary photographers would not be able to function if it weren’t for fair use. What she experienced when she saw my painting (whether it’s “derivative” as you put it I would be willing to mud wrestle over: I think not!) has been politely termed (by Siva V.) as "author anxiety." It's something we may all experience from time to time, and it does not signify infringement, but rather an emotional attachment to one's original and to one's intentions, an attachment that is perhaps, as Susan herself humbly described, "old fashioned." But "originals", especially if they are documentarian in nature, such as journalistic photographs, are and must remain open to quotation, critique and artistic transformation by others without the permission of the original’s author. And that's where fair use comes in again: it is a limit imposed upon authors' copyright control. Fair use is a good idea, it is written into the Constitution, it’s part of the Copyright Act, and it's been there for a while. It would be kind of absurd, wouldn't it, for an author to be able to exert absolute control over who gets to quote or reference or critique their work, and how? Where would dissent be? Or criticism? As I mentioned above, if that work is informational in nature, it is vital that it be subjected to as many interpretations and generative processes as possible. How might it be considered good for one single individual to control the framing and context of something as complex, as multi-faceted as, say, a revolution?? That is where the argument of total control would eventually lead us, to a pure fascism of representation. I do not use that word lightly. And as Judge Kozinski was quick to point out at the conference, once you put a work out there it becomes part of our common cultural experience, it belongs to some extent to all of us (otherwise why put it out there?); it is something that will be built upon regardless of the author's wishes – it is something that we as artists have a responsibility to respond to and yes, create new contexts for. Cynthia et al.,
It is important that you understand this: Susan and photographers like her exercise fair use when shooting photographs of other people’s intellectual property, of people and places without ever having to ask their permission. Documentary photographers would not be able to function if it weren’t for fair use. What she experienced when she saw my painting (whether it’s “derivative” as you put it I would be willing to mud wrestle over: I think not!) has been politely termed (by Siva V.) as “author anxiety.” It’s something we may all experience from time to time, and it does not signify infringement, but rather an emotional attachment to one’s original and to one’s intentions, an attachment that is perhaps, as Susan herself humbly described, “old fashioned.” But “originals”, especially if they are documentarian in nature, such as journalistic photographs, are and must remain open to quotation, critique and artistic transformation by others without the permission of the original’s author. And that’s where fair use comes in again: it is a limit imposed upon authors’ copyright control. Fair use is a good idea, it is written into the Constitution, it’s part of the Copyright Act, and it’s been there for a while. It would be kind of absurd, wouldn’t it, for an author to be able to exert absolute control over who gets to quote or reference or critique their work, and how? Where would dissent be? Or criticism? As I mentioned above, if that work is informational in nature, it is vital that it be subjected to as many interpretations and generative processes as possible. How might it be considered good for one single individual to control the framing and context of something as complex, as multi-faceted as, say, a revolution?? That is where the argument of total control would eventually lead us, to a pure fascism of representation. I do not use that word lightly. And as Judge Kozinski was quick to point out at the conference, once you put a work out there it becomes part of our common cultural experience, it belongs to some extent to all of us (otherwise why put it out there?); it is something that will be built upon regardless of the author’s wishes – it is something that we as artists have a responsibility to respond to and yes, create new contexts for.

]]> By: Rob Myers http://lquilter.net/blog/archives/2006/04/30/comedies-tragedies-of-fair-use/comment-page-1#comment-32434 Rob Myers Thu, 04 May 2006 10:16:04 +0000 http://lquilter.net/blog/archives/2006/04/30/comedies-tragedies-of-fair-use#comment-32434 <i>I deeply admire Susan for facing an audience that may have been heavily weighted toward the free culture movement of anti-copyright and anti-authorship. I, too, don’t get it. In fact, any true artist that *creates* does not.</i> I'm an artist. I create. I get it. I also admire Susan for making her case. But her claim of a primary, original authorship is at odds with her appropriation of an image of her subject. It is at odds with their personhood, their authorship of their own existance. This is at least as problematic as appropriation of a photographic image to make a painting. And many more people have now seen the photograph and come to hear about Susan's work because of Joy's painting. Free culture is not anti-copyright or anti-authorship. It is pro-creativity. I deeply admire Susan for facing an audience that may have been heavily weighted toward the free culture movement of anti-copyright and anti-authorship. I, too, don’t get it. In fact, any true artist that *creates* does not.

I’m an artist. I create. I get it.

I also admire Susan for making her case. But her claim of a primary, original authorship is at odds with her appropriation of an image of her subject. It is at odds with their personhood, their authorship of their own existance. This is at least as problematic as appropriation of a photographic image to make a painting. And many more people have now seen the photograph and come to hear about Susan’s work because of Joy’s painting.

Free culture is not anti-copyright or anti-authorship. It is pro-creativity.

]]> By: Cynthia Turner http://lquilter.net/blog/archives/2006/04/30/comedies-tragedies-of-fair-use/comment-page-1#comment-32416 Cynthia Turner Thu, 04 May 2006 04:10:21 +0000 http://lquilter.net/blog/archives/2006/04/30/comedies-tragedies-of-fair-use#comment-32416 "But that same hypertrophic, harmful growth, nevertheless allowed Susan to pursue other interests not well protected in any other way: privacy, dignity, trust, political context and memory." What you have just so poignantly described in Susan's representation of her work is her *authorship* -- her tangible expression. This is indeed what copyright protects. The "hypertrophic, harmful growth" of copyright is legal "scholar" mythology. An artist's' right to protect one's authorship is more imperiled than ever. This movement to dismantle an artist's right to her unpolluted voice is very troubling. Joy may have been inspired somehow to create a derivative, decontextualized expression from Susan's work. It should not be at the expense of Susan's right to control the integrity of her work. The exaltation of Joy’s work and the celebration of Joywar seems to me to be nothing more than juvenile vandalism against Susan's art. I deeply admire Susan for facing an audience that may have been heavily weighted toward the free culture movement of anti-copyright and anti-authorship. I, too, don't get it. In fact, any true artist that *creates* does not. If someone wants to re-mix another's original creative work, there is an embarrassment of royalty-free and unprotected works to draw from. And it was there long before copyright term extensions, creative commons and flickr. The public domain is awash with available imagery to play with. Why can't the free culture remixers respect artists who rely on copyright to protect their careers and livelihoods? Or is the artistic slander what it's really all about? Cynthia Turner “But that same hypertrophic, harmful growth, nevertheless allowed Susan to pursue other interests not well protected in any other way: privacy, dignity, trust, political context and memory.”

What you have just so poignantly described in Susan’s representation of her work is her *authorship* — her tangible expression. This is indeed what copyright protects. The “hypertrophic, harmful growth” of copyright is legal “scholar” mythology. An artist’s’ right to protect one’s authorship is more imperiled than ever. This movement to dismantle an artist’s right to her unpolluted voice is very troubling.

Joy may have been inspired somehow to create a derivative, decontextualized expression from Susan’s work. It should not be at the expense of Susan’s right to control the integrity of her work. The exaltation of Joy’s work and the celebration of Joywar seems to me to be nothing more than juvenile vandalism against Susan’s art.

I deeply admire Susan for facing an audience that may have been heavily weighted toward the free culture movement of anti-copyright and anti-authorship. I, too, don’t get it. In fact, any true artist that *creates* does not.

If someone wants to re-mix another’s original creative work, there is an embarrassment of royalty-free and unprotected works to draw from. And it was there long before copyright term extensions, creative commons and flickr. The public domain is awash with available imagery to play with.

Why can’t the free culture remixers respect artists who rely on copyright to protect their careers and livelihoods? Or is the artistic slander what it’s really all about?

Cynthia Turner

]]> By: madisonian.net http://lquilter.net/blog/archives/2006/04/30/comedies-tragedies-of-fair-use/comment-page-1#comment-32402 madisonian.net Wed, 03 May 2006 23:45:23 +0000 http://lquilter.net/blog/archives/2006/04/30/comedies-tragedies-of-fair-use#comment-32402 <strong>The Drama of Fair Use...</strong> Laura Quilter has a wonderful post about a moving episode at the recent Comedies of Fair Use conference in New York. “JoyWar” began when Joy Garnett appropriated a photograph she found on the Internet, and repainted it. Shortly after exhibiting i...... The Drama of Fair Use…

Laura Quilter has a wonderful post about a moving episode at the recent Comedies of Fair Use conference in New York.
“JoyWar” began when Joy Garnett appropriated a photograph she found on the Internet, and repainted it. Shortly after exhibiting i……

]]> By: joy garnett http://lquilter.net/blog/archives/2006/04/30/comedies-tragedies-of-fair-use/comment-page-1#comment-32388 joy garnett Wed, 03 May 2006 15:51:16 +0000 http://lquilter.net/blog/archives/2006/04/30/comedies-tragedies-of-fair-use#comment-32388 Laura, thank you for posting your thoughtful reflections of Susan's and my joint presentation at the 'comedies' conference. I think I speak for both of us in saying we were grateful for having had the opportunity to tell the story together, at last, to such an open and serious audience. best wishes, Joy Laura, thank you for posting your thoughtful reflections of Susan’s and my joint presentation at the ‘comedies’ conference. I think I speak for both of us in saying we were grateful for having had the opportunity to tell the story together, at last, to such an open and serious audience.

best wishes,
Joy

]]> By: NEWSgrist - where spin is art http://lquilter.net/blog/archives/2006/04/30/comedies-tragedies-of-fair-use/comment-page-1#comment-32386 NEWSgrist - where spin is art Wed, 03 May 2006 15:30:56 +0000 http://lquilter.net/blog/archives/2006/04/30/comedies-tragedies-of-fair-use#comment-32386 <strong>Comedies of Fair U$e: Post-Conference Commentary Transcripts...</strong> image source This page will be continually updated as commentary and transcripts accumulate, and will eventually link to the NYIH site where they will post MP3 files of the entire conference, synched to Power Point slides, mash-ups, etc... In... Comedies of Fair U$e: Post-Conference Commentary Transcripts…

image source This page will be continually updated as commentary and transcripts accumulate, and will eventually link to the NYIH site where they will post MP3 files of the entire conference, synched to Power Point slides, mash-ups, etc… In…

]]> By: Liza http://lquilter.net/blog/archives/2006/04/30/comedies-tragedies-of-fair-use/comment-page-1#comment-32382 Liza Wed, 03 May 2006 14:17:27 +0000 http://lquilter.net/blog/archives/2006/04/30/comedies-tragedies-of-fair-use#comment-32382 It sounds like an amazing conference, especially the Joy/Susan discussion. WOW. It sounds like an amazing conference, especially the Joy/Susan discussion. WOW.

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