Canadian Artists Call for "Balanced Approach" to Copyright

Appropriation Art: A Coalition of Arts Professionals (Coalition) advocates what it terms a balanced approach to copyright reform, through an open letter to Minister Bev Oda, Minister of Canadian Heritage, and Minister Maxime Bernier, Minister of Industry. The Coalition is composed of over 600 artists, curators, directors, educators, writers, associations and organizations from the art sector. The Coalition is particularly concerned about the impact of amendments to the Copyright Act on artworks which use appropriation, since contemporary art often takes the form of cultural commentary, criticism or parody. Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg and James Rosenquist are only three well-known artists whose work is dependent on appropriated images. In the open letter, the Coalition offers three principles that it argues should ground Canada's copyright policy. First, the Coalition urges rejection of legislative changes which would give copyright owners more control, arguing that creators need access to the works of others in order to create. Second, the Coalition's position is that fair dealing is too narrow a right and that the Canadian government should consider replacing the right of fair dealing with a broader defence, such as fair use. Lastly, the Coalition would reject legislation that would outlaw otherwise legal dealings with copyrighted works merely because a digital lock has been used on them. The Coalition's letter comes just over a month after the Canadian Music Creators Coalition's open letter to Ministers Oda and Bernier, asking the government to consult with musicians and those in the music industry on any copyright legislation that the government proposes. For the Coalition's open letter see: http://makeashorterlink.com/?A29E11D4D For the Canadian Music Creators Coalition's open letter, visit: http://www.musiccreators.ca/docs/Open_Letter_to_Ministers.pdf Summary by: Katharine McGinnis