Copyright describes an artist or creators rights to reproduce, distribute, and perform their work. Creating a 3D copy of someone's work could potentially infringe on their rights as the copyright holder because you are reproducing their work. However, copyright is only for a limited time and can expire, so objects like ancient Egyptian sculptures are no longer under copyright.
Key sections of the copyright code and court rulings include:
- Section 102 and 113
Copyright protects works in a fixed medium of expression, which includes sculptures and other works of art.
- Feist v. Rural Telephone Service 1991
Works must be sufficiently creative in order to be copyrightable.
- Section 101
The utilitarian aspects of objects (like bowls or clothing) cannot be protected by copyright. If the work includes something that meets the criteria of creative expression (i.e. a decorative image), that part of the object may be copyrightable.
- Public Domain (Section 302)
The copyright term for anonymous works lasts for a period of 95 years from the first publication of the work or 120 years after the year of its creation, placing most cultural heritage objects in the public domain.
- Rogers v. Koons 1990
Translating a two-dimensional work protected by copyright into a three-dimensional work without the original artist’s permission can be considered an infringement on the original artist’s copyright. The resulting three-dimensional work would be considered an unauthorized derivative.
- Bridgeman v. Corel 1999
Scans of objects are not likely to be copyrightable because they are designed to be a “slavish copy” and do not meet the minimum requirement for creativity and originality.
For more information about copyright, digitization, and 3D modeling in makerspaces, check out the resources below.