Stop stealing our artwork

Angst, anger and anxiety crowd your thoughts.

This may describe a familiar memory for artist Brianna McCarthy who found her original compositions screened onto fashion garments on sale in New York City without her consent.

Brilliant photographer Laura Ferreira can surely recall the dark moment when she defended her work across seas, after she observed her creative portrait plastered on marketing materials to promote and adorn a party for a celebrity rapper from Atlanta.

It’s apparent that too many graphics designers and event producers who sustain the culture of disregard for the value of creative work don’t consider this question.

The prevalence of such unscrupulous conduct in TT needs to be aggressively addressed because silence and #SMH are not solutions.

In the last three years, my photography has been pilfered and placed in a holiday message ad from a corporation, billboards in a political campaign, and recently in promotional materials for a Tobago show. The event producer recently expressed intent to settle the invoice for unauthorised use of my photography in an email he copied to his key sponsor, he reiterated the same intent in a parade of Facebook messages over the last 11 months, but still fails to do the right thing.

The pursuit of restitution is stressing, distracting and time-consuming, enough reason to defer to shovelling the grief into a distant memory.

In reality, stolen artwork is forever scarred by the experience of theft. That’s why restitution is mandatory for me. But it is equally valuable to educate and empower the next generation. Creatives must employ social media to dispense pointers and share our story as a cautionary tale to emerging talents.

It is important to one’s defence strategy with unscrupulous event producers to recognise event sponsors as an ally. When I advised Jet- Blue of the misuse of my photo in Miami Carnival marketing, their reply was swift, concerned and empathetic.

In contrast, providing solid proof of unethical conduct to the executive at Magdalena Grand Beach Resort, which sponsors and hosts Tobago Fashion Coda, garnered a slightly icy and distancing email.

A message on the Atlantic LNG website is inspiring and a marvelous steward for the stance all TT companies that attach their brand’s reputation to events should embrace: “It is essential that we protect Atlantic’s reputation through a strong culture of integrity and ethical conduct.

Each employee, contractor and business partner has a critical role in maintaining Atlantic’s reputation and applying the highest ethical standards in everything you do. Please ensure that you are familiar with Atlantic’s Code of Ethics and that you comply with them at all times.” — Nigel Darlow, CEO.

In the absence of union representation, organisations that claim the mandate to elevate and develop artists would be offering a valuable service by facilitating access to legal services suited to the financial limitations of many artists. Theft of artwork persists where culprits observe there’s no organised activism or intimidating presence to pursue restitution.

When we publicly denounce theft we provide motivation to fellow artists and may inspire government and private sector intervention to curb the disease of exploitation.

SEAN DRAKES via email