Lincolnshire Artists Call for Better Protections Against Online Copying

Lincolnshire-based artists are voicing their unease regarding the unsanctioned duplication and reselling of their creations on the internet. Eve Marshall, an artist who work is displayed at the Indigo Crow Gallery in Lincoln, expressed her disheartenment upon finding out that her artwork had been replicated and sold without her knowledge. She described the experience as “deflating” and “disturbing,” considering the amount of effort she puts into her art pieces, only for someone to use and profit from her ideas unscrupulously.

Mel Langton, another artist and the joint owner of the gallery, has also made it clear that she avoids posting her work on the web due to the fear of unsolicited use by artificial intelligence. She made an analogy, comparing it to inviting someone to steal from her home, yet the onus to retrieve the stolen items falls on her. Langton’s feeling resonates with Emma Farley, a jewellery designer from East Yorkshire, who has also seen her work duplicated and sold online.

These incidents underscore the importance of bolstering legal safe guards to prevent exploitation of artists’ work. Dids Macdonald from the Anti-Copying in Design organisation advocates for easier-to-access protections and more stringent governmental measures to dissuade deliberate copyright breaches.

This story is a rework of an original piece by the BBC.