Stephen Mead, Artist/Curator
On Art and Appropriation: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appropriation_(art) |
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Art Appropriation & Copyright:
When trying to contact people in conjunction with the origins of these images very rarely was there even a name given as creator/copyright holder, (unless an LGBTQI photographer/painter did a self-portrait), and so I made every effort of trying to contact those who might know who the creator was, including estates where both subjects and (most likely) unknown photographers, were deceased. For the most part I wound up with further dead ends: people not responding or people having no idea who owns copyright and who I should contact.
Should anyone wish to contact me with said verifiable information I would be happy to add it to the site. I am also open to amicably cooperating regarding any verifiable copyright issues/paperwork.
The point is I felt and feel so strongly about this series/museum and what it is attempting to do that I just went on with the work of creativity. In 2019, on the whole, LGBTQI history is not taught in school curriculums, thus a person (student) might like the way an image is presented here and want to learn more about who/what is represented. Moreover a museum online is more easily accessed as long as a person has internet capacity or the means to get to a place (a library, friend’s house, community center etc.) which has it.
I’ve done a lot of soul-searching and truly believe how these images are used create entirely new pieces of art. I take pride in that and encourage other collage/montage artists to go on creating, with confidence, courage and heart, despite subjective draconian arguments regarding copyright infringement. Google the many court cases involving this argument and hear the validity of the voices of the artists vs. the reasons others try to judge and suppress the integrity of that art. The voice, the soul of the artist, is pretty much the one with staying power simply because court cases stir up more publicity and thus more curiosity about the art. This occurs whether a viewer ultimately decides if the art is even worth the fuss or not!
IF A MUSEUM VISITOR WOULD LIKE TO SUGGEST A FIGURE/ORGANIZATION ETC. FOR THIS MUSEUM (ESPECIALLY PERHAPS FROM A COUNTRY OF CURRENT OPPRESSION**) AND COULD PERHAPS HELP PROVIDE BACKGROUND INFO/IMAGES/LINKS/DOCUMENTATION PLEASE USE THE CONTACT FORM AT THE END OF THIS MUSEUM. THANK YOU!
**If you live in a country, city, household of oppression may this museum bring you a sense of hope , may it even inspire you to (if possible) safely document the LGBTQI Struggle going on around you so that struggle too may one day be in a museum as just another part of history.
When trying to contact people in conjunction with the origins of these images very rarely was there even a name given as creator/copyright holder, (unless an LGBTQI photographer/painter did a self-portrait), and so I made every effort of trying to contact those who might know who the creator was, including estates where both subjects and (most likely) unknown photographers, were deceased. For the most part I wound up with further dead ends: people not responding or people having no idea who owns copyright and who I should contact.
Should anyone wish to contact me with said verifiable information I would be happy to add it to the site. I am also open to amicably cooperating regarding any verifiable copyright issues/paperwork.
The point is I felt and feel so strongly about this series/museum and what it is attempting to do that I just went on with the work of creativity. In 2019, on the whole, LGBTQI history is not taught in school curriculums, thus a person (student) might like the way an image is presented here and want to learn more about who/what is represented. Moreover a museum online is more easily accessed as long as a person has internet capacity or the means to get to a place (a library, friend’s house, community center etc.) which has it.
I’ve done a lot of soul-searching and truly believe how these images are used create entirely new pieces of art. I take pride in that and encourage other collage/montage artists to go on creating, with confidence, courage and heart, despite subjective draconian arguments regarding copyright infringement. Google the many court cases involving this argument and hear the validity of the voices of the artists vs. the reasons others try to judge and suppress the integrity of that art. The voice, the soul of the artist, is pretty much the one with staying power simply because court cases stir up more publicity and thus more curiosity about the art. This occurs whether a viewer ultimately decides if the art is even worth the fuss or not!
IF A MUSEUM VISITOR WOULD LIKE TO SUGGEST A FIGURE/ORGANIZATION ETC. FOR THIS MUSEUM (ESPECIALLY PERHAPS FROM A COUNTRY OF CURRENT OPPRESSION**) AND COULD PERHAPS HELP PROVIDE BACKGROUND INFO/IMAGES/LINKS/DOCUMENTATION PLEASE USE THE CONTACT FORM AT THE END OF THIS MUSEUM. THANK YOU!
**If you live in a country, city, household of oppression may this museum bring you a sense of hope , may it even inspire you to (if possible) safely document the LGBTQI Struggle going on around you so that struggle too may one day be in a museum as just another part of history.