The
work that we produce as illustrators falls under the category of Intellectual
Property when it comes to copyright definition and legal protection. The term “Intellectual
Property” began to be used in the mid 19th century in reference to
early copyright statutes and patent law. However, it was not until the late 20th century that the concept was adapted in a broad sense. Intellectual property
refers to “creations of the mind”. Recognition and protection of creations of the mind is
intended to stimulate creativity towards the advancement of research within a
field for recognition and/or financial gain. Illustration, design, and art fall
within this creatively based classification.
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| © 2012 Don Arday. |
Intellectual Property
Intellectual
property is divided into two categories: The first is copyright classified
works, which includes artistic works such as illustrations, drawings,
paintings, designs, photographs, and sculptures; literary writings; musical
works; theatrical works; software; and architectural designs: Although not part of this discussion, the
second category consists of industrial classified works.
Intangible Assets
So
where does the work of illustrators, designers, and artists fit in to the
definition of intellectual property? Works of art, musical compositions,
literary works, phrases, designs, discoveries, inventions and other forms of creation
are known as “Intangible Assets”. Intangible assets are defined as identifiable
assets that cannot necessarily be measured but none-the-less were created
through the application of a particular time and effort. Sometimes referred to
as “Invisible Assets”, these assets must also be original in nature, in other
words, not derivative of someone else’s intellectual property.
Intellectual
property encourages the disclosure of intangible assets involving creative
investigation to the public through publication and distribution of new
discoveries, rather than keeping them a “trade secret”. It also acknowledges
commercial success as a motivation for the presentation of creative works.
Intangible
assets are divided into two categories: The first is “legal intangibles”, which
includes copyrighted works such as works of art, designs, service marks, trademarks,
formulas, and patents; generally speaking, assets that are attached to a fixed
state of display. The second category is “competitive intangibles”, which
includes knowledge-based activities such as working methods, strategies,
collaborative discoveries, and subject knowledge. Competitive intangibles
directly influence the creation and effectiveness of legal intangibles, and therefore are intellectual property.
So
how do intangible assets relate to the work of illustrators and artists? Illustrators and artists not only
produce copyrightable works, but many of those works are produced using unique
individual approaches to materials, or even unique combinations of materials. Additionally,
nearly everyone creating original artwork uses a very personalized working method.
This is where the descriptive term “intangible” comes in.
Here’s
an example of how important an intangible asset can be. Art produced by Jackson
Pollack has become a “tangible asset”, each painting he produced may be worth
millions of dollars. However, because a very personal intangible asset, his indelible
way of laying down paint relating to his own physicality and emotional state,
died when he died, his artistic contributions cannot carry on. For traditional
media illustrators, it may be the flick of the tip of a brush, or a unique
color palette, etc. For digital media illustrators, it may be a custom designed
brush, a unique color scheme, or a sequence of operations, etc.
Quantifying
an expressive way of applying paint, or how reference sketches are evolved to produce
a finished work would indeed be very problematic. So, for the sake of
simplicity they are classified as the intangible assets of a work of art.
In the Too Much Information Category
“Intellectual
Capital”, which is sometimes confused for intellectual capital, in so far as definitions exist at this time, is an investment measure
of the valuation of a company. The measure takes the form of this equation:
Tangible assets minus the market value of a company. In other words, the
intangible gap between hard assets and the assessed value of a company is a
company’s intellectual capital, i.e., it’s workforce knowledge. Hardly ever
acknowledged, intellectual property and intangible assets, comprise a portion
of this determination for the value of the intellectual capital of a company.
Here’s
an example of how important intellectual capital can be. When Steve Jobs had to
step down as CEO of Apple, the investment valuation of the company fell
markedly. It was the result of a one-person shift in personnel. When Jobs died the value of Apple's stock dropped again. CEO’s come and
go at corporations without any effect on the bottom line, but that was not the
case with Jobs and Apple. It was his ability to generate intellectual property
and his worth as a visionary contributor of intangible assets that increased the company's value.
Forms of Intellectual Property
Copyright
Copyright means the right to copy. “Copyright
protection subsists … in original works of authorship fixed in any tangible
medium of expression.” All art is copyrighted from the moment it is produced or
becomes a fixed copy. Copyrights cover, works of art, designs, literary works,
musical compositions, sound recordings, theatrical works, motion pictures,
architectural works, and software.
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| © 2012 Don Arday. |
Patent
A patent is a legal property right for an invention given
to the inventor to protect the right of the inventor to capitalize on their
invention for a limited period of time. The invention may take the form of a
product or process. The property right is granted to the inventor in exchange
for a full description of how to construct or perform the invention. Patent
categories are utility patents, design patents, and plant patents.
Trademark
A name, word, phrase, image, symbol, design, logo, or any combination
of these elements can become a trademark. The purpose of a trademark is to differentiate the goods of a company or individual from other
like situations. A trademark is a unique identifier used to aid consumers in recognizing
the particular source of goods of an organization or individual.
Service Mark
A
service mark is a name, word, phrase, image, symbol, design, logo, or any combination
of these elements. It is essentially the same as a trademark except it relates
to only to services. The purpose of a service mark is to differentiate the services of a company or individual from
other like situations.
Conclusion
Illustrators, designers, and artists sometimes fail to recognize the
value of the intangible aspects that contribute to the creation of their
intellectual property, i.e., their work. Artists should acknowledge, through a
self-appreciation and appraisal, not only what they produce, but also how their
artwork comes to reach its finished state. And finally, to realize that there
may be, not just an intrinsic value to it, but a financial value as well.
