Is selling fan art illegal?
Are artist really selling millions of illegal art pieces every single year?
For the most of us, when searching for our favorite movie, comic or videogame characters it is normal to see people drawing, sculpting and making all kinds of fan art, and also… selling it. But have you ever wondered, is selling fan art illegal?
For your surprise selling fan art and actively making money of it is actually illegal, unless you are working with the copyright owners or have paid for a license.
Most artists like to walk on very thin ice. “It’s not illegal if you don’t get caught”
Companies simply don’t care, have enough time or recourses to keep up with everyone selling illegal fan art. Therefore most artists like to stay behind pay walls such as Patreon, and use their public platforms such as Instagram or Twitter to share fan art which isn’t illegal.
So if you want to make something legaly you have to ask the copyright owners directly, pay for a license or work with platforms.
How do artists bend the rules to their favor to gain profit that may or may not be illegal?
Artists can abuse the laws of fair use that permits limited use of copyrighted material without having to first acquire permission from the copyright holder.
Examples of fair use. Small portion of original material used, commercial value of original work is not diminished, new work is critique, satire, or educational, benefit to user is predomminantly other than commercial and new woek is predominantly original product of use.
Artists can also use a term called substantial similarity, in which you draw a character from a videogame, movie etc. And make it a little different or with a different style and then sell it. We’re still walking on thin ice here, but this way artists can avoid copyright laws.
Last but not least, artists can work with different platforms like Redbubble that own permissions to use certain brands. All you need to do is follow the guidelines and you’re good to go and sell fan art legally.
What have we learned? Artists are criminals! But on a more serious note, it’s not wrong to sell art that you have made with your own style. Selling fan art and commisions aren’t the only way for an artist to make money. Create your own comic, apply to work at an animation studio and work hard!