ESAG Executive Committee Members Ana Maria Silva and Patricia Ballard’s April 8 presentation of Canadian Copyright Law for Artists was well received by our members. Drawing heavily on the text Canadian Copyright Law by Lesley Ellen Harris (4th Edition) and Your Guide To Canadian Law by Demakos et al. with some other sources, Ana Maria and Patricia set out the principles of copyright law for artists. Throughout the talk, they touched on topics such as artist’s 4 major rights, copyright duration, assignment and licensing of copyrights, commissions and artist ownership, artist’s contracts, derivative art works, international copyright treaties and answered some basic frequently asked questions about copyright law.
Patricia Ballard responds to a query from Laura Gilroy about copyright issues
After the presentation members exchanged information and experiences they had had with their clients on copyright issues. Ana Maria and Patricia distributed an information sheet
listing intellectual property lawyers, an artist’s union (CARFAC) and government offices which deal with copyright registration, a bibliography and various website resources. We all discussed artist professionalism, the importance of written contracts and the business part of being an artist.
A question from Executive Committee Member Chris Kielesinski
We concluded the meeting with a ‘Show and Tell’ and an update of our 15th Anniversary exhibition. Thank you to Scarlett who showed us a new calligraphy pen from Germany and Mary Catherine who demonstrated new ink pencils from England. John Suter is preparing to teach members a 2-day Celtic Knot Workshop and we will survey members at the next meeting for suitable dates.
Members enjoy the Pot Luck lunch before the Talk
Next month, (May 13th) all you artists out there turn out your studios! We will have the topic “Shop Talk” where members will be asked to bring art materials to exchange, sell or give away. You may have art lessons and projects to share or technical questions to be answered. There will be no formal presentation, but rather an extended ‘Show and Tell’ session with materials and techniques demonstrations.
Discussion of members' work at the monthly "Show and Tell" Session
Our 2016-17 season closes with the June 10th meeting which will take place at Westminster Abbey in Mission where we will have our Day Retreat for Artists. Be sure to sign up for the retreat at the May meeting. It is a wonderful day in a country setting within the ambience of a benedictine monastery where we will have 2 spiritual talks tailored for the sacred arts and much more. We look forward to seeing you there! Details will follow soon.