Book Review: Research Handbook on Art and Law

Having worked for a legal aid organization that serves the arts community in my state, this Kat has learned that the intersection of arts and law provides a variety of unique insights and challenges. Thus, it is a pleasure to present Research Handbook on Art and Law from Edward Elgar Publishing.

Edited by Jani McCutcheon and Fiona McGaughey, two legal scholars from the University of Western Australia, the book offers insightful research into the intersection of art and law, primarily from the perspective of common law countries. The book seeks to bridge the gap between visual arts and the law, including intellectual property and laws regulating free expression.

The book, comprising 25 chapters arranged in 10 parts, provides the collected perspectives of a variety of scholars in intellectual property law, human rights law, philosophy, criminology, and the arts. The book begins in Part I, entitled Copyright’s Rights in Art, with a discussion concerning the scope of copyright. The first chapter by editor Jani McCutcheon is an exploration of the adaptation right and picturization; this concerns the authors of text-based works regarding the adaptation into a visual form. In the next chapter, Eva Subotnik presents the merits of the succession of copyright after the life of the author.

Part II addresses Copyright’s Regulation of Art, juxtaposing copyright law with the practices of visual artists. Chris Dent considers the effects of regulation through the lens of three visual artists, finding that they are not as important as one may expect. In chapter 4, Jonathan Barrett offers that a recognition of the heterogeneity of art on the part of intellectual property law could afford greater coherence between the two regimes. Julian R. Murphy and Nicholas Modrzewski complete the section in chapter 5 with a discussion of Richard Prince’s disavowal of his work comprising Ivanka Trump’s Instagram feed.

Part III considers The Outer Boundaries of Art in Law. In chapter 6, Alana Kushnir addresses the potential copyright that could be afforded to art museum curators for their creative expression. Michael Blakeney explores the potential overlap between copyright and patent law when fine art techniques are patented as methods of manufacture in the next chapter. Amanda Scardamaglia considers the intersection of trademarks and copyright in art and advertising in chapter 7, with a discussion of the historical process of lithography. This part concludes with a discussion of the protection of colors through intellectual property regimes by Ema Denby, Paul Green-Armytage, and editor Jani McCutcheon.

Part IV raises the issues of forgery, fraud, and misrepresentation, presenting the ways in which laws are Regulating ‘Bad’ Art. In chapter 10, Jade Lindley discusses how technological progress can address the issues posed by forgeries in art. In the next chapter, Dan Mossenson considers the effectiveness of Australia’s legal system regarding fraud and misrepresentation in art, particularly concerning aboriginal art.

Part V addresses Art, Law and the Public Interest, presenting the effect that legal classifications and competing interests may have on art. First, in chapter 12, Enrico Bonadio considers the balance of interests in preserving street art and graffiti. Marta Iljadica explores how the classification of art as a material thing, removed from intellectual property, presents a distinct set of issues concerning the public interest, particularly as it relates to UK property law.

Part VI considers art’s treatment of law, in Art Critiquing or Girding Legal Systems. This part begins with chapter 14, in which Desmond Manderson discusses Rafael Cauduro’s 7 Crimines Mayores. The mural, which stands inside of the Supreme Court of the Nation of Mexico in Mexico City, is a model for how art can force the justice system to contend with its own injustice. In chapter 15, Ben Wardle considers how legal iconography, in particular, “Lady Justice” can help maintain the relationships of domination and oppression by equating legality and legal outcomes with justice and morality.

Hardcover Price: £180.00