Artists using doll likeness without crediting

I moved the Mijn Schatze discussion to its own thread so that members can continue to discuss this in a generic way in this thread. (The Mijn Schatz thread really is a discussion unto itself).

Mijn Schatze:
http://www.denofangels.com/forums/showthread.php?t=300131

 

are you talking about that french artist who painted ON existing doll photos, did some changes like hair,etc. and then made money with those drawing??
if not
but yah, i lost the link but i read that. ITS AWFUL

ANF OF COURSE THEY SHOULD ADMIT THEY USE DOLLS AS MODEL!!
ppl should always give credit! its important!! id be freaking mad if i realise someone used my pic for any reason and did not give me credits! if he/she didnt ask but write in big: ORIGINAL BY SAHOMA. i wont say a word

 

Sahoma>> If you're talking about Mijn Shatze, her specific discussion thread is in Armeleia's post. ^^

 

I find it generally corteous to at least credit sources. That's why Creative Commons License was made to begin with. As an artist who had to deal with people stealing some of my (lesser known) stuff, I think its a great disappointment for someone who, after supplying something for another artist's creativity to receive at least a little credit. Its not because its to brag who's the better artist but its to thank them for giving new possibilities to a fellow artist.

Some artists may not care but some do because of the amount of effort put into creating stock photos, gathering brush resources, etc. I think its healthy to credit an artist to be honest about one's work. That one took liberty to be inspired by another's work. See, if you are not honest about crediting people when it's due, one way or another someone's bound to notice and it speaks a lot about who you are.

As for tracing on top of something existing for example, because some things are very distinct items I still feel that one person must give due credit because after all, its not one's own entire work. For example I appreciate those who submit over DA vectored versions of their favorite anime series and mention that they did not do the original illustration. There are some cases that if you used something totally unrecognizable from the original, perhaps it may be debatable not to put credit anymore.

I think we're missing piccaso's point when we say we steal something from another artist...but that's because he indicates that we steal the ideas not the original work per se.

 

I've come across multiple "artists" who trace or digitally change company doll photos and try to hide with all their might that they stole from others. Heh... I mean, I customize off-topic toys and whatnot, but I always state clearly the base toy or doll used. It's just like when we post photos of our face-ups and body painting we've done. We say what doll sculpt we use... simple as that! I'm not gonna go around saying "yeah um, this is 100% my creation." XD These "artists" would be forgivable if they'd simply cite where they got their... "inspiration".

 

I agree, there is nothing bad about taking inspiration from another person, but credits are really important!
Credit original author at least is better than take pictures without permission and being caught later ^^;

 

My girlfriend and me both work in a company for gaming, she's in the artist area and I'm in the support and marketing area.
There was once a girl applying for a job as designer, and when she showed her portfolio my girlfriend just asked me to take a look at it.

Her portfolio consisted mostly of traced BJD photos, some from companies, some from owners, and one was actually a photo of a doll I owned.
Hell, sometimes she didn't even trace but simply overpainted or smeared on them via photoshop.
We looked at her and asked "Oh, you also collect BJDs?".
She had NO CLUE what we were talking about and I only took out my iPod, showing her the photo of my doll she had overpainted.
I never saw someone turning red so quickly, no need to say she didn't get the job.
It's amazing how people behave sometimes.

 

you can call it instant karma! XD

 

This is a difficult subject for me and while I can certainly understand why the artist did not credit the doll company/doll sculpt directly, part of me wonders why. Why not credit the people who originally designed the doll. It would in no way discredit the artist and it might actually earn them additional business. To me, this is entirely not the same as a model posing for an artist. The model is fully aware he/she will be the subject of someone's art work without credit, but is generally paid for their service or 'donate' their service for the love of art or themselves..haha! Granted, we are constantly and frequently influenced by things without even being conscious of the process as well.

But, here's the ugly part of the equation. I have watched many of my friends work being directly copied for monetary gain and it outrages me. A very good friend of mine sews doll clothing from her own unique designs, her own developed patterns, and not patterns circulated on-line or even patterns moderately adjusted to become her own. They are all her own and have a very distinctive style. It did not take long for the copies to appear and follow suit... exact and I mean exact copies started popping up in on-line shops. Did any of them credit the original creator. Hell no! Fast forward a few months later and a friend had her knitted patterns, again developed by her personally, ripped off. Not one week later and an acquaintance had a client purchase one of her items, tear it apart seam by seam, and copy the exact pattern and put multiple copies up for sale. I also make handmade items for dolls and there are clearly people out there who are using my items for their inspiration. I get no credit out of the deal and I do not understand why. When I put together collections, I frequently use items from other sellers in my photo sets. I also 1. ask for their permission first despite the fact that I already own one or more of their items and 2. I always provide links or written credit for their work. What does that cost me..absolutely nothing and it is a win win situation for all parties involved.
So, yes, this is a very sensitive subject for me and I'm torn between the lines of what is right and what is clearly wrong. The people that toe the line can be excused, but the people who outright copy cannot?? I do not understand this desire for people to exact copy..at least take the item..make it better and make it your own!!

Please understand this rant has nothing to do with people seeing something and being inspired enough to fashion something similar for their own enjoyment and purposes. This applies to the sub-set of people who copy for financial gain. I know we are all guilty of buying knock-offs in some form or other so it is difficult for me to figure out where I exactly stand on this issue. I only know that each and every time I see someone steal designs from friends of mine or even me, I think very poorly of them and their questionable creative abilities. End of lecture.. apologies for the long winded reply, I needed to vent on this one.