Is this copyright infringement and if so, should I do anything?

Get all excited and say “look at this, great minds think alike” if she has any sense at all, she will admit what she has done, and do the right thing.

From the legal side, the only person that can follow up on copyright infringement is the copyright holder (in this case, the artist). You would contact the original artist and explain what happened, and then it’s up to them if they want to pursue the matter.

From a social side, I wouldn’t bother. Just quietly think less of her. :) If it becomes a repeat problem though, I would consider finding some way of unexpectedly outing her and forcing her to confess.

I would def contact the original artist. It’s wrong that she copied his work for profit. However, he’s the only one who can do anything legal about it. I would take pictures and tell him what happened.

Otherwise, I wouldn’t say anything to her. No need to start drama.
You COULD find out where she sold the painting to…and send them a picture of the original and explain in a letter what happened….and then they’ll feel dumb for paying so much for a copy. :)

Also, copied in what sense? Traced?

I tried looking this up, but didn’t find anything, so I may be completely wrong, but I think I heard that even though the artist created the work, the person who buys it owns the rights to it. I don’t know how/if that would affect anything, I’m just putting it out there.

I think is a different problem… one of plaigarism by a student. I’d definitely do somethign like what yarnlady suggests… hopefully she’ll get the hint before she makes a stupid mistake.

@petethepothead , no, you are not correct. Selling an item of art does not grant a license to that art. If it did, you would be able to reproduce and sell every single book and music cd you own.

Today seems to be the day for ethical dilemmas. Some good ones here, too, good enough to probably be worth collecting as case studies for an ethics class.

If this were my friend, I think I would be as much concerned about the wrongdoing of someone close to me as I was about warning her before she repeated her theft when the stakes were high. If this were my friend, I believe that I would bookmark the published drawing and leave the book in her path. If she stole it from that book, she will know it by its cover without ever opening it. I would expect her face to tell me volumes.

What I would not do is fake or pretend anything while talking to her. This would be a time for honesty above all else.

I would want her to know that I knew what she had done, and I would want her to understand that it could have serious consequences for her, not just now but in the long term. Scenarios are easy to imagine. Suppose she makes a name for herself, and her buyer brings out this example of early work—and it is seen by someone who knows the original artist’s work? What would that do to her career?

I would also realize that I might be losing a friend.

Any follow-through would be up to her. She should contact the buyer, buy the work back, and destroy it, but I would not tell her that. I would just quietly let her know that representing another’s work as your own is an act that has a name and that can have serious consequences. I would not be the policeman to contact the buyer or the owner of the original or anyone else. That is her responsibility alone.

I would let her know you know and that it’s profoundly uncool unless of course she was paid to make a reproduction of the original work. If she’s blatantly passing it off as her own when it isn’t then just let her know that she’s headed down an ultimately unfulfilling road.

I talked to her a bit ago and let her know I had seen the original artist’s drawing. She was just like, “Oh yeah?” Then I said that I didn’t think that was okay to do. She shrugged it off, gave me a look like I was stupid for bringing it up, and said she didn’t think it was a big deal at all.

It is copied in that she was obviously looking at the work and attempting to make her drawing look like it. I doubt it was traced, but everything about it is the same – same pose, same line quality, very similar medium, etc. She’s a skilled drawer so her result was remarkably similar. There’s no way anyone could compare the two and think it was coincedence or accident or appropriation.

I don’t plan on doing anything else about it, probably. I let her know what I thought and she wasn’t interested. It’s her own issue.

@eadinad My suggestion; drop this so-called friend, she sounds like trouble.

Perhaps feels like because she drew it, she wasn’t ripping him off? If so, stupid girl.

It definitely is copyrighting, especially if she sold it as an original work. Legally, it could end up being bad news for her, and the more she does it, the greater her risk of legal entanglements.

It is a long shot that the original artist in this case will find out and try coming after her for it (unless she makes it big someday), but that isn’t really the point. It is dishonest, unsustainable, and a bad precedent to set for herself. I’m guessing that she went to art school to become a better artist, not to become better at ripping off other artists’ work. In the long run, it will only serve to stifle her own creativity. Also, people (like yourself) will notice and she will develop a reputation. If she wants to be short-sighted and degrade herself just to make a (seemingly) easy buck, then that’s her issue. Beyond telling her what you think about it, there isn’t much you can do. Frankly, her attitude about it says a lot about her character.

It isn’t “copyrighting.” A copyright is the right of the creator of a work to copy it and distribute it. Unless the author (creator) of a work sells those rights and until they expire after a time period set by law, they are his or hers. It is a copyright violation to infringe those legal rights.

Also undoubtedly the book itself is protected by copyright. If you look on the copyright page (back of the title page) and at the acknowledgments section, you will see what protection is legally invoked.

^^^ Good catch – I should watch what I type when tired. :o)
I wasn’t using the correct terminology – the copyright infringement is the issue here, not copyrighting itself.

Morally wrong? I don’t know. If you look at it from a sane perspective, she sold a painting and the buyer is happy cause he/she got a painting that he/she likes. It would be better if the buyer knew it is a reproduction though.

Legally, I guess it’s wrong.

I don’t know exactly what to think about the whole copyright and ownership legislation of immaterial products. It depends on the product, the situation, the artist and how many years the artist has been a stiff.

I find the current official positions on these topics questionable. But hey, I’m a swede. I’m bound to be corrupt in these matters. Pirate Bay and all.

Your friend may not see plagiarism as a big deal, but it is illegal and protected under copyright laws. Try pointing her to this site and let her reconsider her actions. She can simply let the buyer know where she got the idea for the drawing, and let the buyer decide if they still want the piece. There is always the chance that the buyer could find out on their own about the source, and then her reputation could be ruined and she could face criminal prosecution.

This does speak volumes about her character, and you may want to keep an eye on her to protect yourself down the road.