Fan Art Defined
Wikipedia
defined Fan Art as artwork that is based on a character, costume, collage, item, or story that was created by someone other than the
artist, such as a fan, from which the word is derived from. The term,
while it can apply to art done by fans of characters from books, is usually used to
refer to art derived from visual media such as comics, movies or video games.
In addition to traditional paintings and drawings, fan artists may also create
web banners, avatars, or web-based animations, as well as photo collages,
posters, and artistic representation of movie/show/book quotes.
Usually,
it refers to fan labor artworks by amateur artists, or artists who
are unpaid for their fan creations—so that, for example, professional comic
adaptations of the Star Wars films would not be considered fan art while a
version done by an unaffiliated fan would be. The distinctions here cannot
always be finely drawn and the actual status of particular works can often fall
into a gray area.
Fan Art, which can be singular or
plural, refer to graphic representations of various media forms that have
numerous fans. Many types of fanart exist, and they are similar to fanlit. In fanlit, people
write stories, plays, or screenplays about characters or worlds that have
already been created. As the name fan suggests, those who are significant fans
of a certain character, show, fictional world or the like usually produce this
work. With fanart, instead of writing, artists usually paint, draw, or use
other graphic forms to copy, represent, explore or extend the life of a created
character or world.
There are many examples of fan art, and
these may start when kids are little and want to draw their favorite cartoon
character. Those gifted in art may learn exactly how to draw or recreate
something beloved from a comic book, TV show, video game or movie. One common
area of fanart is reproductions of art based on Japanese manga and on anime.
People may use a combination of drawing and writing to create further
adventures of a comic book character.
In addition to art inspired by manga or
anime of Japan, very popular books and movies tend to be the inspiration for
tons of fanart. For instance, the Harry Potter series,
Tolkien’s work, the Star Wars series and others can stir up the souls of
artists so that they create numerous representations of the characters or
world. There are many online sites that feature fanart museums or galleries.
Those who complete a piece of art may submit it to these sites for possible
inclusion. Usually the only reward is sharing love of a particular fictional
thing with others.
Most times, art inspired by created
works is not sold. There is generally a distinction between a person who is
licensed to create new stories about a favorite character or world, and those
who simply do so because they love the characters or world. Usually new people
hired to extend the creations of someone else are fans, and have a unique
vision of how to proceed. As long as unlicensed fanart isn’t sold, artists
usually don’t have to worry about violating copyright laws. This
issue can get sticky when people do charge for their artistic works.
Artists who receive licensing or who are
contracted to create new art may become inspirational to fan artists too. The
work of Alan Lee, which is featured in Peter Jackson’s filmed version of The Lord of the Rings, for instance,
is now captured in illustrated copies of Tolkien’s work. There are fan artists
who copy Lee’s style or appear to be influenced greatly by it.
Fan Art Has its Own Story:
Evolution
Previously,
a fan artist was anyone who drew for a genre because they were a fan of the
genre rather than a professional employed to create art for the genre. In the
earlier years artists like Wendy (Fletcher) Pini, who produced amateur original
fantasy art for fanzines, would be deemed a “fan artist” because she produced
art for genre she was fan of. While an fan artist could make fan art for any
genre, generally the most common were the science fiction and fantasy genres.
However,
in modern usage, the word “fan art” means any amateur art for a specific TV
show, movie, book, or other media event not owned or created by the artist.
Original genre art is generally no longer considered “fan art.”
Technically,
the term "fan art" encompasses art in every medium just as the word
"art" does, including but not limited to drawing, painting,
sculpture, photography, photo manipulation, videos, crafts, textiles, metal smithing, and fashion.
Within these broad media types, fanart has also created types of art almost
specific to itself, such as icons. Colloquially,
fan art most commonly refers to the art for a series that is drawn or painted
either traditionally or digitally. However, colloquial use can also be
dependent on the fandom. For example, in a fandom
where photo manipulation is the dominant form of art, "fan art" for
the fandom often implies "photo manipulation" not traditional art.
Does a Fan Art violate Copyright?
The
ability to create fan art is vital to comic artists both as a means of
practicing to improve skill, but also to make money at conventions by drawing
commissions for fans. When a particular art
is copyrighted, which means that only the author/rights holder has
the right to copy, display, distribute, and create derivative works. Fan art
can be considered a derivative work, therefore most fan art is an infringement
of the holder’s copyright.
BUT,
copyright law has a doctrine called “fair use” that (in the name of free
speech) protects certain uses that would otherwise be an infringement. To find
protection in fair use, a second work must be an artistically transformative
use of the first, not have a great economic impact on the first, and not take
too much of the first. A good piece of fan art is very transformative, giving
us a new vision of a familiar character, so that factor could benefit the
artist. The amount taken would probably not favor the artist, because one of
the considerations is if the “core” elements are copied, which most fan art
does.
The
practice is common, but is it legal? The short answer is a qualified maybe,
which is about as good as you can get from a lawyer without specific facts. I
think most artists are safe, but each situation will be different, depending on
distinct situations, looking the facts of the actual work.
Does it violate trademark?
Protection
in the trademark realm covers the right to claim you are the rightful source of
a good. Trademarks are violated when a second party markets goods in such a way
that the consuming public could believe they are buying from the first party.
Trademarks usually protect words or phrases and company logos, but can also
extend to packaging (called trade dress). Fan art should not ordinarily violate
trademark if the artist makes no claim to be associated with the trademark
holder and is not marketing his or her own version of it.
Suggestions to artists who want to draw original
works based on others creations.
1.
The more original your work is, the more protected you are. Be creative, that’s
why you draw, anyway.
2.
Be wary of mass production. The bigger you get, the bigger the target on you.
3.
Don’t use the logo or trademarked name. People want the drawing, not the name,
so don’t risk it.
What does the Law say?
According to copyright law, copyright holders have
the sole right to distribute derivative works based on an original creation.
This includes sequels and any other work that includes copyrightable elements
from the original creation. If
you are an author or an artist and you want to use all or part of someone
else's creation in your work, you may run into problems with claims that your
art is a derivative work.
Conclusion
Fan fiction and fan art are, usually, an
infringement of the right of the copyright holder to prepare and license
derivative works based on the original. This is almost without exception. However, many copyright holders, for good reasons,
tolerate fan art and even encourage it, but this should not be taken as carte
blanche to do what you want with the source material. There are many lines that
a fan artist can cross and wind up in legal trouble. The best thing is to study the rules for your
community and obey them closely. That is safe to remember that your creations only exist through the good graces of the
copyright holder and they can change their mind at any point. If you’re not comfortable with that, then you’re
better off creating your own, wholly original work. Not only do you not have
the threat of being shut down hanging over you, but you also have the right to
exploit the works however you see fit.
- Disclaimer
The Information on this blog
is for education purposes only. This blog is not legal advice.
1. ^ http://wiki.xbmc.org/index.php?title=FanArt XBMC
FanArt definition
2. ^ http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-fanart.htm What
is Fanart? - WiseGEEK
3. ^ http://thetvdb.com/wiki/index.php/Fan_Art thetvdb.com
Fan Art definition
4. ^ http://www.afterellen.com/internet/2009/2/lesbian-fan-art Fan
Art Empowers Queer Women
5. ^ http://fanart.tv/rules/ Fanart.tv Rules
