INTELLECTUAL/CREATIVE PROPERTY Theft
Art-making (visual arts, music, dance, or writing) is a risky business. Much is stolen before it ever gets out there. Competitive, jealous, and sneaky others have no qualms putting their name to something that’s not theirs, and running to make money or gain from it in other ways.
Sometimes, the true creator can take action. Often, not. Litigation costs money, time, and emotional energy. Then, there’s the case that needs to be built, and loop holes that wrong-doers successfully identify and take advantage of…
The victory might be the thief’s in terms of securing the actual creation/idea stolen. But, even if that person is very clever, he or she is unlikely to be able to replicate the true creator’s style, process, or thoughts. There’s an essence/spirit that will never be anyone else’s, and this, ultimately, will be clear, somehow.
Maybe thieves’ marketing/redevelopment skills will help procure cash/recognition rewards. But, even then, they can’t give genuine meaning or authentic sparkle to what is and was never theirs. At the end of the day, they do know that, as do the real creators, and those familiar with them and their work…
p.s. Coincidentally, CARFAC Ontario’s Spring 07 newsletter (Vol 10, no. 1) has two articles that are well worth checking out, "Fair is Fair, (COPY) RIGHT? Living Without Fear as an Appropriation Artist," and "VISUAL ART PHYSICAL PROPERTY, COPYRIGHT, AND MORAL RIGHTS, A Canadian Overview."
