[MCN-L] images in didactics: fair use? -- response summary

[Deborah Wythe]

Hello,
I received a number of thoughtful responses to the question I posed a few weeks ago (thank you!), which I summarize below, as promised.
Deborah Wythe 
Brooklyn Museum 
Digital Collections and Services

Posted on MCN-L (Museum Computer Network) and MUSIP (Museum Intellectual Property) lists, 8/25/2009: We'd be interested in knowing whether any other museums out there have established a policy or set a precedent 
on the use of copyrighted images (especially from commercial sources) as contextual illustrations on didactics 
or wall labels. Do you consider this fair use, or do you acquire permission/pay for rights just as you would for a
book? Does the size of the reproduction play into the decision?


1.   
university
museum

This
came up with explanatory signs . . . Counsel's Office concluded that the use of
a single image in a reduced scale on a sign as part of an educational program
was a fair use. If we wanted to include that same image in a print version of
the explanatory text or on a web version of our signs, then we might need
permission. 



Our experience is that while people may start off thinking that they will only
use it in one place, the ease (and efficiency) of repurposing information makes
this problematic.



2.   
art museum



We
do consider reproduction for gallery didactics to be fair use; however, if we
obtained the image under contract for another use, we will ask permission for
the reuse.  We consider fair use to be
trumped by licensing agreements or loan agreements.  Size of the reproduction is not a
consideration. 


3.    contemporary art museumThe question's come up here too (although not in terms of using images from a commercial source -- 
rather, using images of modern and contemporary artworks), and when it does, this is what we've 
done/decided:

Reproducing one very small image of a copyright-protected work on a wall label for the run of an exhibition 
is a fair use - given the context, size of reproduction, fact that it's local/not distributed, properly attributed,
and we don't believe such use takes money away from artists/estates. 
We don't seek permission in these cases. 4.    art and archaeology museumWe try to use common sense.  If we're reproducing an artist's or photographer's work as a big enlargement 
as part of an exhibtion wall design, we're using that work, in the full sense of the word.  We're doing 
something with it. And we'll get permission and pay.  But if we're reproducing something as a small 
reference image on a wall label -- small on small, let's call it, and definitely didactic -- then we often won't.  
We've never had a problem resulting from this policy.
deborahwythe at hotmail.com 



_________________________________________________________________
Hotmail® is up to 70% faster. Now good news travels really fast. 
http://windowslive.com/online/hotmail?ocid=PID23391::T:WLMTAGL:ON:WL:en-US:WM_HYGN_faster:082009