Can Modern Appropriation Art be Reconciled with Copyright Law? A Closer Look at Cariou v. Prince
- Marysia Opadczuk
- Nov 22, 2022
- 15 min read
Updated: Mar 12
Artists have drawn ideas, thoughts, and concepts from the works of others for centuries. However, copyright infringement issues frequently arise in the contemporary world. The case discussed in this piece concerns contemporary artworks from the ‘Canal Zone’ series by Richard Prince. Most of the works had photographs by Patrick Cariou incorporated in them, which were previously published in Cariou’s Yes Rasta book. Following an analysis of appropriation art history, postmodern theories, contemporary art market, the contradictory nature of copyright law, and finally the US ‘fair use’ test and ‘transformative character’ requirement, the author is critical of copyright law not allowing for appropriation art. She is of the view that under certain circumstances, the use of preexisting art is justified.
Appropriation art history
In the history of art, it would be an impossible task to count all the times artists have ‘copied’, in the broad meaning of the word, one another. Appropriation art per se was recognised around the time Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque made their collages from 1912 onwards, and Marcel Duchamp’s exhibited his ‘Readymades’ in 1915.[1] It can be defined as intentional borrowing, copying, and alteration of existing images and objects.[2] Artists have been ‘appropriating’ each other’s works for centuries. One example is Raphael (fig. 1), whose work was recreated by Diego Velázquez (fig. 2), which in turn inspired Francis Bacon (fig. 3).
