Copyright Question!

[dkw1972]

Hi all, I while I go I made the piece in the first picture and it was well received by the people who saw it and it looks even better now the garden it sits in is established.

I decided to make a similar version (second pic) but didn't have a garden fork to use for the base so I decided on a steel disc I to hand and chose to mount that on a concrete block for stability which could either be buried or left on show.

I seperated the rods at the base so I could weld all round them to get a good fixing and I thought it worked out quite well.

As it was quick to make I thought I would drop it on ebay to see how something like that might sell, but I had an email from ebay telling me that they had removed the listing as they had received a signed legal statement telling them that I had breached the copyright of another sculptor.

I checked his work and he does indeed have a similar sculpture, his has an extra rod to mine and his rise from very heavy guage steel channel in the shape of a cross and his has a circle on the top of each rod but aside from that they both have rods of different lengths rising at an angle so are very similar in design.

Being from the photography field, copyright is a pretty simple matter but this is something very new to me.

How am I to know if another sculptor has made something similar to one of my pieces? and how close to another piece does it have to be to be considered a breach of copyright?

[cheesepaws]

Not to belittle your efforts but this work seems pretty generic. I find it hard to believe that anyone could claim a copyright such a basic form. Even so - you might ask to see a copy of this supposed legal statement and show it to a lawyer. At the very least you should contact ebay and try to get more information on how to file your own complaint. If nothing else they should pull his work as well until this is resolved.

I think I found the guy you are referring to here:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Metal-Garden-Art-Spring-Pampas-Organic-Sculpture_W0QQitemZ110425274468QQcmdZViewItemQQptZ LH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item19b5dbf864&_trksid=p3911.c0.m14#ht_658wt_1060

If so, his work is still pretty grounded in the representation of plant life while yours are far more abstract and academic (formal). I see little similarity beyond use of linear steel.

[dkw1972]

Ebay are a nightmare to deal with in cases like this, they just wash their hands of it, I have sent them masses of emails about it but they rarely answer any questions fully put to them, I just get the standard line constantly which is:

"an intellectual property rights owner, sent us a signed legal statement telling us that your item infringed their copyright, trademark or other rights. We were therefore legally obliged to remove the listing. eBay hasn't inspected your item, and we're not experts in the rights of third parties, so we're not qualified to decide whether your item infringed the intellectual property rights of the rights owner"

They then leave it to me to contact the rights owner, which will be my next step.

No that's not the sculptor on ebay you found, i've not seen that one, the sculptor who had my piece removed is a UK sculptor, and looking at his sales his version is a constant seller.

[dkw1972]

I have been trying to recycle more and have been working with pieces of bottles, and I made another version with rings on the rods and inside those I use wine bottle bottoms.

I assume he would complain at that version too !

[The Forge]

This other 'artist' is just afraid that you might steal some of his business on E-bay. Anyway, the burden of proof would be with this other guy to prove that your piece is an exact copy of his and so could be considered infringement. E-bay is just playing it safe by not allowing you to put it for sale. If it were me, I would ask the other guy for the papers that show what is copyrighted. Then just tweak my design to be different. It does not take much to do that. By the way, does his site show any reference to the fact that the pieces are copyrighted? :)

[dkw1972]

Hi, yep on all his ebay listings it says:

"COPYRIGHT NOTICE

The Sculpture, designs and ideas featured in this auction are the intellectual property of artist **** *******.They may not be copied, reproduced or used in any way. Contravention would be an infringement under the copyright act. "