THE BRITISH LAW OF ARTISTIC COPYRIGHT 337 



must be first published in some part of the British Dominions to which the Act extends, 

 and if unpublished the author must, at the date of the making of the work, be a British 

 subject or resident within such part of the British Dominions as aforesaid. If the making of 

 the work has extended over a considerable time it is only necessary that the author should 

 have been for a substantial part of that time a British subject or resident or domiciled within 

 the British Dominions or a foreign country to which the Act extends. 



The change made by the new Act affects paintings, drawings and photographs to this 

 extent. Publication did not affect copyright which existed from the making of the work, 

 and which was protected by common law right, so long as it remained unpublished. On 

 publication the copyright became subject to the terms of copyright enacted by the 1862 Act. 

 The new law abolishes common law protection entirely, but gives protection for unpublished 

 works; under the statute an unpublished engraving retains its copyright so long as it remains 

 unpublished, but it becomes amenable to the terms provided for posthumous works if 

 published after the author's death. 



"Copyright" means the sole right to produce or reproduce the works or any substantial 

 part thereof in any material form whatsoever, and to publish the work; it includes also the 

 right to dramatise a work of art in the form of a living picture or otherwise. "Publication" 

 means the issue of copies to the public. The exhib-'tion of a work is not publication, nor is 

 the construction of a work of architecture, nor the issue of photographs or engravings of 

 works of sculpture or architecture. 



Under the old law engravings and sculpture acquired statutory copyright on publication, 

 by the addition of the name of the proprietor and the date of publication on each original or 

 copy issued to the public. 



In paintings, drawings and photographs there was statutory copyright from the making 

 and quite apart from publication, but registration was necessary prior to any action at law 

 in defence of copyright. Registration is now abolished. 



Architecture is introduced into a copyright Act for the first time, and solely at the instiga- 

 tion of the Berlin Convention. It is very uncertain how it will act or what is protected, and 

 its inclusion was by no means unanimously desired by architects. But the protection of 

 architectural designs has been put in operation abroad, and certain claims have been dealt 

 with. The use of the expressions "architectural drawings" and "drawings of architecture" 

 seems to have caused some little confusi6n, but perhaps unnecessarily. An "architectural 

 drawing or plan" may be taken to be a constructional drawing made by the architect for the 

 use of the builder. A "drawing of architecture" may be made by anybody of a building 

 already constructed, and while showing the superficial character of the building would not 

 be in any sense a constructive drawing. 



Infringement is the doing without the consent of the owner of the copyright anything, the 

 sole right to do which belongs under the Act to the owner of the copyright. The following 

 acts are exceptions: 



(A) Any fair dealing with a work for purposes of private study, criticism or review is not 

 an infringement. 



(B) An artist who has disposed of his copyright in a work may use any mould, cast, 

 sketch, plan, model or study, made for the purpose of the work, provided he does not thereby 

 repeat or imitate the main design of the work. 



(C) Paintings, drawings, engravings or photographs may be made and published of a 

 work of sculpture or artistic craftsmanship permanently situated in a public place or building, 

 or of an architectural work if they are not in the nature of architectural drawings or plans. 



(D) Photographs may be made of paintings, drawings or engravings, situated in a public 

 place or building, maintained in part or entirely by public funds, .unless the copyright in them 

 is private property. 



Infringement is committed by anyone who sells, lets for hire, offers for sale or hire by 

 way of trade, or widely distributes or exhibits in public, or imports for sale or hire into any 

 part of the British Dominions, any work which to his knowledges infringes copyright. 



These exceptions clear up points to which no reference was made in the old Acts, though 

 some of them were assumed to be permissible, such as the use by the artist of his sketches 

 and studies, and the making of complete copies of works for purposes of private study. 

 "Fair dealing" is a new element which may have to be defined by the Law Courts. 



Terms of Copyright. Copyright endures for the life of the author and fifty years after 

 his death. But the Act renders it impossible for an artist to dispose of his copyright for 

 more than his life and twenty-five years after his death. No matter what agreement he 

 may make to the contrary, twenty-five years after his death the copyright returns to his 

 legal personal representatives as part of his estate. 



A provision is made whereby in the case of a work which has been published, it is possible, 

 twenty-five years after the death of the author or in the case of an engraving thirty years, 

 for any person to reproduce and publish the work, on giving notice of his intention and on 

 payment of a royalty of IO per cent on the published price in respect of copies sold, the 

 notice and the payment of royalties to be regulated by the Board of Trade. 



Photographs have copyright for fifty years from the date of making the negative. 



