Artist & Authenticity

So I'm going to get a little serious for a minute! (don't worry folks, it doesn't happen too often)

Artistic plagiarism can be a real issue within the art world, and something that should be brought to awareness and recognised by both artist and their consumers alike. So I would like to take this time to try and bring a little light on the topic, provide some education and list my ways in which I try to keep my work as authentic and original as possible.

Lets start off with the basics: What is Plagiarism?

Plagiarism is defined as “the act of using another person’s words or ideas without giving credit to that person.” This takes on many forms, both online and offline; and commonly occurs within the art world. There are 2 main forms of Artistic Plagiarism:

Art theft: the act of stealing artwork and publishing it as your own art (obviously).

Tracing: is an act of duplicating the original artwork with either little or no change at all, without gaining permission or giving credit by referencing the original artist(s).

When I first started learning about Artistic Plagiarism, I remember thinking "But what if I'm not plagiarising, I'm just being inspired by..."? One of the key differences between being inspired by another artist, and plagiarizing another artist is - intent. As a self taught artist, one of my primary sources of learning how to paint using different mediums and trialling different techniques has been to copy other artists through doing art tutorials. However, I have no intention to claim their piece as my own, nor do I intend to sell their art under my own name, therefore I am not plagiarising them. I also don't use their work pieces as a references of my own, I only use them as tools for learning, and while I know there are plenty of other people who like to paint similar tops as I do, I believe I have my own unique style and interpretation to the pieces that I create.

Artistic Plagiarism can result in negative consequences for both the original artist and the person who committed the plagiarism, including:

• Damage to professional reputation

• Loss of profits from sold artwork under false pretences

• Legal action can be taken against the plagiariser

My own personal call to action to avoid plagiarism:

I for one have always had fears of (unknowingly) plagiarising other peoples work. I use to be of the belief that "it's all been done before" and therefore assumed my work was never going to be original. And being a self taught artist who has learnt a lot of my skills through online platforms and social media, it can become hard sometimes to distinguish between my own inspirations, and what has been inspired by other artists.

But as I step myself up into the online space, it is something I feel passionate about being upfront and honest about. I personally always endeavour to avoid coping other artists work, and I do this through several ways:

• All my ORIGINAL art is labelled as such - original

• Anything that has been inspired by and produced through the use of art tutorials, I have referenced the original artist and provided links to their open online learning platforms (so that everyone can view the original source for themselves)

• I do not sell anything that is not an original of my own art

• When creating a new piece, I always create a safe space to allow my own authentic style to flow through me. This usually results in me being set up in my back yard , cat and dog wandering around, music blaring and me just vibing along with a canvas and paintbrush - I don't have any other reference material in front of me as I want my art work to be an extension of myself, my own thoughts, feelings and memories.

• By making an effort to learn from many different artists with many different painting techniques, I like to think I have developed a style that is unique to my own work.

• Lastly, I am open to communication in any form where there maybe concerns of (unknowing) plagiarism being done. We are all human, mistakes can be made, but these mistakes offer us an opportunity to learn and grow. And while I have no intention to ever steal, trace, copy or plagiarise another artists work, I do hope that if someone else feels this is occurred, that they can contact me and we can fix the error as best as possible.

So on that note - if you have any concerns regarding my artwork (or you are an artist / consumer who just wants to learn more about artistic plagiarism), please feel free to contact me via the contact form below to discuss further.

Sending Love & Positive Vibes,