Law Commons^™

An Artist's Privilege, Niels Schaumann

Faculty Scholarship

This article examines visual art in light of the letter and the spirit of the Constitution's Copyright Clause and the Copyright Act of 1976 (“Act”) and concludes that artists should have the freedom to copy works, not only of popular culture, but of all kinds. In other words, people creating art should be permitted to copy anything and everything. This is not to suggest that copyright serves no purpose: destroying the copyright edifice merely to protect the ability of certain artists to create would be dangerous and foolhardy. Practical limitations on an artist's privilege to copy can be imposed to …