December 31, 2021
Happy New Year!
December 24, 2021
Merry Christmas
December 20, 2021
Yale Center for British Art
Wall of Stubbs (those paintings are HUGE) |
December 17, 2021
Plagiarism or inspiration?
Many people have posted their feelings, thoughts, and advice on the recent Takeshi incident. I'm not looking to rehash all the details or create drama. Many others have shared very thoughtful posts. I can only share from my own experience.
I wouldn't say that I have created any iconic pieces in the hobby, but I did have a piece that I believe was blatantly copied. In my case, an individual reached out to inquire about buying my little Cheveyo resin custom and I declined. He's a personal piece that I adore. I customized him to standing with a braided mane, moved and braided his tail, and painted him bay with no markings. I later saw this same individual listing for sale a bay Cheveyo with the front leg lowered, braided mane, and a braided swishy tail. My best guess is she had a piece commissioned similar to my custom resin when she couldn't purchase mine. I doubt the artist that recreated this piece had any idea that my piece even existed, so I am not trying to place blame on the artist. I was shocked the first time I saw the duplicate. I felt emotions I'm not even sure how to describe. I have a little solace in the fact that I still like mine so much better. Still, it didn't (and still doesn't) feel nice. I feel like my creativity was violated, which is very personal.
Excessively Diverted (his name is a nod to Jane Austen's writing) customized Sarah Rose Cheveyo resin |
There is also the issue of artists using other art pieces as inspiration, which is the case with Takeshi. More than a decade ago, I recreated several Hamilton paintings and another painting into models. At the time, I thought that the age of the paintings made it reasonable for me to go ahead and recreate a 3-dimensional version of those paintings. I now know better and would only venture to create something based off of another artist's work if it is in the public domain.
BreyerFest Diorama Entry 2021 |
I think education is how we as a hobby move forward. Let's keep the conversation going. We can do better, we need to do better. Because when you know better, you do better.