Universal Declaration of Human Rights
“Everyone has the right to the protection of the moral and material interests resulting from any scientific, literary or artistic production of which he is the author.” – The UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Establishment of Copyright
Copyright is automatically granted when a person creates a work that meets the threshold for originality. No registration or additional procedures are required. The original copyright cannot belong to a company; however, the creator may transfer economic rights related to the copyright to an employer or another entity.
Scope of Copyright Protection
Copyright protects the personal expression of a work but does not cover ideas or themes—only the individual and original form in which they are expressed. For a work to qualify for copyright protection, it must be inventive and original. However, high artistic quality is not a requirement, meaning the threshold for originality is relatively low for visual art.
Types of Works Protected
Artistic works protected by copyright include:
- Paintings
- Sculptures
- Drawings
- Graphic art
- Works of environmental art
- Video and multimedia installations (typically considered audiovisual works)
Even drafts or incomplete works are protected under copyright law.
Related Rights
Related rights protect a creator’s performance, rather than the work itself. In particular:
- Photographs: To receive full copyright protection, a photograph must be inventive and original. Ordinary photographs that do not meet the originality threshold are granted related rights, a lighter form of protection.
- Audiovisual works: Related rights are particularly relevant in the audiovisual sector, offering protection to performing artists and producers of sound and visual recordings.
- Duration: Related rights last 50 years from the occurrence of the event under protection (e.g., the date a photograph was taken).
- Scope: Related rights offer more limited protection compared to full copyright.
Exclusive Rights of the Author
The author holds exclusive rights over the use of their work. Anyone wishing to use a copyrighted work must obtain permission from the author, often with compensation. Copyright consists of two key components:
- Economic Rights
- The right to reproduce the work
- The right to distribute copies
- The right to publicly present the work
- Moral Rights
- The right to be acknowledged as the creator (the right to attribution)
- The right to prevent modifications that would harm the artistic value of the work (the right to integrity)
Moral rights do not expire, even after copyright protection ends.
Duration of Copyright Protection
- Copyright lasts 70 years from the creator’s death, as per European Union regulations.
- After this period, the work enters the public domain and may be used freely.
Limitations on Copyright
While copyright grants the author exclusive control over their work, rights can be partially or fully transferred to others, though full transfers are rare in the visual arts sector. Additionally, copyright is subject to legal limitations, which are outlined in specific regulations on copyright transfer and restrictions.
For more details on copyright limitations and transfers, refer to the section The Artist’s Copyright and Its Limitations.