"Bad artists imitate; great artists steal." ~ Pablo Picasso
One of the surest of tests is the way in which a poet borrows. Immature poets imitate; mature poets steal; bad poets deface what they take, and good poets make it into something better, or at least something different. The good poet welds his theft into a whole of feeling which is unique, utterly different from that from which it was torn; the bad poet throws it into something which has no cohesion. A good poet will usually borrow from authors remote in time, or alien in language, or diverse in interest. ~ T.S. Eliot
Artists ...
steal
seek inspiration
collect
repurpose
synthesize
curate
transform
pay tribute
appropriate
comment upon other artworks
Introduction
Have you ever had trouble coming up with original, creative ideas? Everyone has! It’s tough finding something new to do. But it’s time to move beyond just trying to copy an exact replica of what you find on the internet.
Pablo Picasso once said, “Good artists copy, great artists steal.” What you’re looking at, above, is a version by Banksy, the anonymous street artist. Picasso was actually one of the first modern artists to use collage as a medium, to collect inspiration from a variety of sources.
Learning Goals
Students will learn the difference between inspiration & appropriation.
Students will use build a new work by gathering the ideas of others
Essential Questions
Is copying as part of your artwork ever ok?
What is the difference between copying someone else’s idea and being inspired by their work?
How are stealing and copying different?
What is cultural appropriation? How do I avoid it?
Appropriation – Taking something for your own use without the owner’s permission. Using already existing images and making little or no change to the original image.
Cultural Appropriation - The taking elements of a minority culture by members of a dominant culture. It is distinguished from cultural exchange due to power imbalance.
Inspiration – Process of being mentally stimulated to do something, especially a creative act.
Parody – An imitation of the style of an artist with deliberate exaggeration for comic effect.
Satire – Use of humour, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule.
Intertextuality – Referencing other work – art, literature, film, and using it as the basis for a new work of art. You can also include references within your own pieces. This adds significance to the meaning behind a work based on your previous knowledge and understanding of those works.
Remix – pieces of art (or other works) are mixed together to form a new creation.
Copyright - a law that protects the creator's ownership of and control over the work he or she creates. It requires other people to get the creator's permission before they copy, share or perform the work. NOTE: Assume that any work you find on the internet has automatic copyright. Somebody created it and is entitled to credit.
Plagiarism - The practice of taking someone else's work or ideas and passing them off as one's own, or neglecting to give credit to the creator.
Creative Commons - A kind of copyright that indicates how a work can be shared, copied and adapted. Usually requires credit to the original creator.
Public Domain - A creative work that is no longer protected by copyright (usually due to age, or as specified by creator). There are exceptions based on the type of work, who owns it and if it was published. Some old material is copyright by museums or the family of the creator.
Fair Dealing - The ability to use small amounts of someone's creative work without permission, but only in certain ways. Click on Copyright to see more.
Collage - an art form that combines a variety of materials to create a new composition. Collages can be paper, found-objects, mixed-media, fabric, photo-montage & digital.
Multimedia - using a variety of media (materials, surfaces, objects).
Unity - a principle of art. Unity ties together various elements so that they appear to fit together. Unity can be achieved through repeating elements like colour, shape or texture. It can also be created through composition, eg. having elements in a circle, or all figures looking towards a single spot.
While copying Disney and other characters can give you an opportunity to practice and learn how various animators and cartoonists put together their work, it is not original art. This is not acceptable as an assignment. Remember that inspiration must be significantly changed to form something new. So how does the artist who goes by the name KAWS get away with adapting Disney and other characters (eg. the Simpsons?). Apparently he got a licence to do what he does. Therefore he is not breaking copyright law. And he's called out some who have imitated HIS work (Jason Freeny). His work is also considered parody.
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