Artistic Works
Includes photographs, charts, graphs, diagrams, cartoons, illustrations, maps, graphs, building plans, sculptures, drawings, paintings, logos, engravings, sketches, blueprints and buildings or models of buildings.
Photographs, including digital and printed, have some additional conditions relating to their use, which are outlined here. Be aware that negatives and the resulting photographs are treated as 'separate' and as such may have different copyright owners.
Rights of Copyright Owners | Duration | Copying Limits | Incidental Artworks | Photographs | Photographing People | Photographing Buildings | Cartoons | Graffiti | Attributing Use of Copyright Material | Further Information
Rights of Copyright Owners
Copyright owners of artistic works have control over the following rights in relation to their works:
- reproducing the work in a material form, e.g. print, scan or save an electronic copy
- publishing the work; and
- communicating the work to the public, e.g. place online or send via email.
Duration of Copyright
For artistic works copyright lasts 70 years after the end of the year of death of the creator. If the creator died before 1 January 1955 then copyright has expired and the work is now in the public domain and can be used without permission. If an artistic work has been created anonymously or under a pseudonym then copyright lasts 70 years from the year the work was first published. Copyright has expired in all artistic works created before 1 January 1955.
For photographs copyright lasts 70 years after the death of the photographer. If the photographer died before 1 January 1955 then copyright has expired and the work is now in the public domain and can be used without permission. If the photograph was taken anonymously or under a pseudonym copyright lasts 70 years after the year the photograph was taken.
For engravings the duration of copyright varies depending on whether the engravings were published during the creator's lifetime or not or if the engravings were created anonymously or under a pseudonym.
- Published during the engraver's lifetime - Copyright lasts 70 years after the death of the engraver. If the engraver died before 1 January 1955, then copyright has expired and the work is now in the public domain and can be used without permission.
- Not published during the engraver's lifetime - Copyright lasts 70 years from the date of first publication. If the engravings were published before 1 January 1955 then copyright has expired.
- Engravings created anonymously or under a pseudonym - Copyright lasts 70 years from the date of first publication. If the engravings were published before 1 January 1955 then copyright has expired.
See Australian Copyright Council Info Sheet G23 for more information about duration of copyright.
Limits on Copying or Communication
Generally, permission will be needed from the copyright owners before an artistic work or photograph may be copied or communicated. There are only very limited circumstances under which an artistic work or photograph may be copied or communicated without permission from the copyright owners.
If you would like to reproduce or communicate an artistic work or photograph for educational purposes then refer to Using Images & Artistic Works for Educational Purposes
If you would like to reproduce or communicate the work(s) for the purposes of study or research, you need to refer to the Fair Dealing Provisions. You also be able to reproduce an artistic work or photograph under fair dealing for the purposes of criticism & review or parody & satire.
Under the personal use provisions, you may make a copy of a photograph that you own in a different format for your personal or domestic use. This means that you can make an electronic copy of a hardcopy photograph that you own and vice versa. There are some conditions that must be abided by:
- The photograph must be a legal copy, i.e. not downloaded illegally from the internet
- You can not sell, hire, or give the copy to anyone. You may lend it to family members or people you live with
- You can only make a single copy.
- If you have signed an agreement with the photographer that prevents you from doing any of these things you must abide by the agreement.
If you would like to reproduce or communicate an artistic work for any other reason, e.g., open access publication, commercial publishing or other commercial purposes; or you wish to use more than the provisions allow, you will need to seek permission from the copyright owner to do so. See Requesting Permission From a Copyright Owner to Reproduce Material for further information.
Incidental Artworks
An incidental artistic work is a work that occurs within a literary work and is used to explain or illustrate its context. Incidental artworks are significant because different conditions apply depending on whether the intent is to copy the image or the the text which happens to contain an artistic work, e.g a graph or diagram that explains the text or an illustration that illuminates the text.
For example, if you are copying (either for educational purposes or for research & study) a page of text and the image is included as part of the text, but your intention is to copy the text, then the requirements for copying literary works apply - i.e. you may only copy 10% or 1 chapter of the text - and there are no restrictions for copying the image, it can be copied in full.
However, If your intention is to copy the image, rather than the accompanying text then the requirements for artistic works apply, which will vary depending on whether the image is being copied for educational purposes or research or study.
If the intended use is not covered by an exception such as fair dealing or educational use, you will need to get permission from the copyright owner as per any other artistic work.
Photographs
Copyright ownership in commissioned photographs varies depending on when the photograph was taken, the circumstances under which the photo was taken as well as any agreement between the client and the photographer. If you, or the University, commissioned, i.e. paid a photographer to take a photograph, then copyright ownership is a follows:
- if the photograph was taken before 30 July 1998, then the person who paid for the photo will own copyright, unless there is an agreement to the contrary.
- if the photograph was taken after 30 July 1998, then ownership is determined by purposes of photo, unless there is an agreement between the client and photographer to the contrary:
- private and domestic photographs – e.g. family portraits or wedding photos - copyright is owned by the client
- any other purposes - e.g. commercial – copyright is owned by the photographer.
However, even if the client who commissioned the photograph owns copyright, and if there is no agreement as to how the photograph will be used, the photographer will still have the ‘right of restrain’. This means that if a photograph was originally commissioned to be used in a publication and is later used on a website, then the photographer has the right to ‘restrain’ further use of the image and request payment. The right of restrain applies to any photos taken after 1 May 1969.
It is strongly recommended that if you are commissioning any photographs that you have an agreement with the photographer that outlines who will own copyright and how the photographs will be used. Contact the Copyright Office for advice.
Photographing People
Copyright in photographs is owned by the photographer not the subject. Under the Copyright Act, there is no legal requirement to ask person before taking their photograph; however it is still recommended that you get their permission. You should also be aware of culture and religious sensitivities when taking photographs of people. Particular care should be taken if photographing children or indigenous people.
Photographing a Building
The design of a building is protected by copyright; however, the Copyright Act enables the photographing of a building without permission from the copyright owner of the building - who is usually the architect. The property owner may impose restrictions on access to the building, which should be identified and clearance in writing obtained before entering. The resulting photograph of the building is a separate work and protected by copyright. Photographs of buildings should acknowledge the copyright owner of the building, in accordance with the requirements of moral rights.
Cartoons
Animated cartoons, such as Finding Nemo or Bugs Bunny, are considered cinemtographic films. For more information see Animations
A static cartoon, e.g. The Farside by Gary Larson, is an artistic work. Many cartoons would be incidental artworks and whether or not you could reproduce or communicate them online would depend on whether or not they had been separately published. If you would like to use cartoons for educational purposes, refer to the guidelines. If you would like to use cartoon for the purpose of research or study, see fair dealing.
Graffiti
The artist who did the graffiti owns copyright and has the usual rights that any other copyright owner has over reproduction. However, it is often impossible to identify who the copyright owner is and anonymity is part of the culture.
If you took photographs of graffiti you own the copyright in the photographs; however, attributing the actual artworks to the copyright owner will be difficult. It is suggested that if you reproduce your photographs you should cite the owner of the actual images as 'Copyright owner of artwork unknown - uncommissioned artwork. Please advise if you are the copyright owner or know who they are'.
Attributing Use of Copyright Material
It is important that the source of the material and the 'moral rights' of the copyright owner are acknowledged and properly attributed.
If the copyright owner is unknown, indicate 'Copyright owner unknown. All reasonable attempts made to identify. If you are the copyright owner or know who they are then please advise us'.
For more information on attributing see:
- Referencing - a webpage from the Language & Learning Skills Unit .
- Citation Styles within the University
- Academic Honesty and Plagiarism
- Endnote - software for managing references and creating bibliographies. Available for students and staff to download.
Do You Need More Information?
- Overview of Copyright
- Guidelines for Using Copyright Material for Educational Purposes.
- Fast-Find Index - an A-Z glossary of copyright terms and topics
- Using Copyright Material for Research or Study
- Introduction to Copyright -a guide from the Copyright Office
- Online Teaching Resources & Copyright - a guide from the Copyright Office
- Contact the University Copyright Office
Content updated 17/01/08