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Copyright of Public Art is the property of Shanghai Fine Arts Publisher Ltd. co. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This article examines the status of copyright in the UK for photographs taken of two-dimensional works of art, considering the effect, if any, of European jurisprudence on the issue. The traditionally low standard for obtaining copyright protection in the UK will be outlined and explained, before it is applied to the specific case of photographs taken of paintings and other two-dimensional works in the public domain. The question whether copyright subsists in such photographs is of especial importance to those in the museum and gallery sector who are in the midst of wide-scale digitisation projects involving works in their collections. The ability for institutions to assert copyright in photographs of these works is essential for licensing the images and managing the uses made of them. After considering the effect of decisions of the Court of Justice of the European Union on the UK's traditional standard for copyright protection in photographs, the article will query the possible outcome in this area of the eventual withdrawal of the UK from the European Union and, perhaps more critically, the removal of the UK from the jurisdiction of the Court of Justice of the European Union and the effect this may have on copyright subsistence in photographs. Will the UK courts reference European concepts in assessing whether photographs qualify for copyright protection, or will they reaffirm familiar UK standards? Are the two necessarily incompatible? Finally, the article will propose a number of options for museums and galleries in asserting copyright in photographs of works from their collections. Asserting copyright will allow these institutions to better control the use made of each image, to introduce licensing systems that would help ongoing digitisation projects, and to reaffirm the link, in the public's mind, between the image and the institution which houses the underlying work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses how a work of art can be destroyed as per copyright laws in Great Britain; reports the enactment of Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988 in the country; and discusses how the artistic works is fundamentally different in nature to textual works.

The article looks at two criminal cases concerning prosecution of heritage crime, one in England and the other in the U.S. It offers the facts of the two prosecutions, along with the chronology of the cases and the reaction to them. Information about the Treasure Act 1996 in Great Britain and the Archaeological Resources Protection Act 1979 in the U.S.

The article focuses on the validity of British law's moral stance regarding challenging art, meaning art that disturbs the general public, and its impact on social progress. The article discusses how challenging art aids cultural development, the relationship between moral laws and avant-garde art that is critical of conventional society as well as art as subjective. The article gives examples of artists guilty of producing challenging art including Damien Hirst, Tracey Emin and Marc Quinn.

As part of a policy to encourage philanthropy generally and specifically to give continuing support for the arts, the Government's 2011 Budget introduced proposals for a 'Cultural Gifts Scheme' to give a tax reduction to individuals or companies that donate gifts of pre-eminent works of art to the nation. This article considers the background context to that legislation, considers its operations and implications from a technical point of view, and reviews its likely effectiveness in achieving its objectives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Droit de Suite, known in the UK as Artists' Resale Rights, provides an artist with the inalienable right to receive a royalty based on the resale price of an original work of art. This paper provides an empirical analysis of actual changes in the UK auction market for art that is newly subject to the Droit de Suite (DDS) because of a change in law. All changes are measured relative to changes for art not subject to the DDS and relative to changes in the auction markets for art in countries where there has been no change in law. We do a difference-in-difference analysis, differencing price growth and sales growth across market segments and across countries over the period 1993-2007. Our results suggest that the introduction of the DDS has not had a consistent negative impact on the UK art auction market during the period of study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the definition of art from a legal perspective and looks at Great Britain's Copyright, Designs and Patents Act of 1988 (CDPA), which explains which artistic works are protected by copyright laws. Various examples of case law are presented, including "Britain v. Hanks" which concerned the artistic quality and sculpture of toy soldiers and a case which concerned whether frisbees, made by the Wham-O Manufacturing Co. Lincoln Industries Ltd, were sculptures based on the process of their manufacturing. It also discusses the case "Lucasfilm Ltd & Ors v. Ainsworth & Anor," which involved the artistic and utilitarian worth of Stormtrooper helmets from the motion picture "Star Wars."

The article focuses on the relationship between the study of law and writing periodical essays in Great Britain during the 18th century. It mentions several serials such as "The Spectator" and "Mirror" which are regarded as records of resistance to present social corruption whose final ability to halt civic decline depended upon the participation of future readers. It also highlights the role of periodical essayists who are recognized as popular writers in terms of the lawyer's ideal vocation.

The article discusses the issue about deaccession of objects from public museums and art galleries in Great Britain. It states that the issue is against the background of apparent further softening of the country's curatorial attitudes towards deaccessioning emerging from the 2008 variation of the Code of Ethics for Museums of the Museums Association. It defines the word deaccession which means the act of removing an object from a museum or art gallery in order to sell it. It mentions that the implementation of the reform may enable scarce resources to be put to better use by museums and galleries.

The article discusses the Holocaust (Return of Cultural Objects) Act 2009 in Great Britain. It states that the act allows particular institutions in the country to relinquish Holocaust-related material. It mentions that the relinquishment will appear mainly in response to claims by Holocaust survivors or their descendants. However, it cites the claim of the descendants of Dr Feldmann, in which the British Museum's did not comply with the act. Moreover, it cites the new legislation which is driven by both in regard to the material that might be relinquished and in regard to the institutions covered.

The article discusses the German model for choice-of-law on droit de suite in Great Britain. The German model, which is developed in the case law by the German Federal Court of Justice, may be a suitable starting point to develop a choice-of-law rule for the European resale right and its implementation legislations by the Member States under Article 8 Rome II Regulation. However, the model is only suitable to handle resales with connections between one Member State and a third State. The choice of law rule has to be refined to the effect that only one implementation legislation of a Member State governs the artist's resale right within the internal market.

The article explores the relationship between economist John Maynard Keynes and the Bloomsbury Group as part of the inspiration for his theories policies about Great Britain's national policy regarding the arts. The author uses Keynes's correspondence with painter Vanessa Bell, ballet dancer Lydia Lopokova, and editor of the magazine "Nation" Kingsley Martin as a basis for her research. What became the British Arts Council was advocated by Keynes and became a model for the U.S. National Endowment for the Arts and similar organizations in Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.

The article focuses on the ways in which the obscenity laws of Great Britain and the U.S. affect the contemporary art. It analyzes the Obscene Publications legislation of England and Wales, and the decision of the U.S. Supreme Court to take obscenity outside the First Amendment protection for freedom of expression. Also, the use of the ancient English common law offense of outraging public decency to criminalize contemporary art is examined.

This article discusses state support of artists in the United Kingdom, focusing on the Arts Council England. To understand the present—or the future—support of visual artists, one needs to understand the past. Accordingly, the article begins with a brief history of the Arts Council of Great Britain from 1946, discussing Thatcher's reforms after the 1979 election. Tony Blair's New Labour continued many of the same strategies instituted by the Conservatives. At the same time as fiscal constraints and "enterprise culture" were imposed, the mission of the Arts Council was broadened to include both geographical representation and a more populist agenda. A review of the contemporary arrangements for state support of artists in the United Kingdom shows that many of the tensions that exist within today's Arts Council were institutionalized in its early days. The article concludes with a comment on what the current situation may portend for the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the Artist's Resale Right Regulations 2006 made by Great Britain's Secretary of the State. These regulations would give the author of a work of art the right to receive a royalty on any sale of their work which is a resale after the first transfer of ownership by the author. However, only works of graphic or plastic art such as a picture, a painting, and a sculpture, are included in these regulations. The regulations takes effect on February 14, 2006.

The article focuses on the decision of Sir Andrew Merritt regarding the case between the Attorney-General versus Trustees of the British Museum. According to the article, his decision resolved controversial question of charity law. The question relates to the uncertainty whether the principle in Re Snowden could be applied to allow the Trustees of the British Museum to return the drawings that were stolen.

The article discusses the basic principles of the criminal liabilities of corporations in the art community in Great Britain. It explores the type of associations that will be held liable for criminal offences and the circumstances that will make these groups become liable. It highlights the differences between incorporated associations and unincorporated associations.

The article examines the issues related to visual arts, electronic imaging and their relationships with the minefield of copyright, licensing and clearance in Great Britain. The article focuses on the general copyright law and on how electronic imaging of the visual arts fits into the regions' copyright law. It looks at some specific clearance issues such as moral rights and rights of personality.

Twenty years ago the legal issues which obfuscate disposals from museum collections were described as `a muddy corner of the law through which some may attempt to drive a coach and horses'. Today the water is no clearer and the postillions are more inclined to make a splash. It may be timely, therefore, to examine how English law bears on what can be one of the most controversial of museum issues. The laws of Scotland and Northern Ireland differ, of course, from those of England and Wales, and this paper does not consider their situation. Nor can it be prescriptive. Only Acts of Parliament and Statutory Instruments have the force of law; the courts alone can interpret the law authoritatively. The views expressed herein are not those of a lawyer, but of a practising museum worker. They are no more than personal opinions. Proposed disposals from museum collections should be subject to legal advice specific to each circumstance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the March 2010 British court case Abraaj Investment Management Ltd v. Bregawn Jersey Ltd. The case involved restitution for the repayment of money lent to invest in Indian, Persian, and Islamic art. The case addressed the complex structure of agency duties over simple loan agreements, possibly to protect against price raises for investors. The case also involved the delivery of art from auction houses.

Information about a seminar concerning art purchase and related legal implications in Great Britain is presented. The topics focused on the application of French, English and Swiss law to art legalities, contracts and legal claims. Lawyers who provided information on said topics of the seminar include Karen Sanig, Ruth Redmond-Cooper and Carolyn Olsburgh.