Ethical Reasoning Entry 2

In the second journal entry assignment students will write about whether or not the readings they’ve been assigned have changed their perspective on their own design work.

2a)

  After finishing the readings, I found a lot of interesting things. For instance, After reading the Guide to Copyright, I found that “Designers now have federal copyright as soon as a design is created—without putting a copyright notice on it or registering it with the Copyright Office. ” Which in my opinion is a pretty big deal. I had no clue and it is a pretty big deal for designers. I also found out what work for hire means. A work-for-hire agreement means that when the client and the designer work together, the client owns the copyright to whatever the artist creates. From the very moment that agreement is signed, it’s owned by the client or the employer.

     The design world is filled with so many talented people. I have looked at and been inspired by so many designers and artists. As a designer, it is important to draw inspiration and draw outside references. Everything in the design world has been said and done. There are a lot of times when I face design blocks or creative blocks and look at other people’s work and kick myself out of that block. when it comes to the work I have designed, I always give credit. For example, for my publication design class, I used images that were taken by really amazing photographers, and in the end, I gave them all credit for the images. I believe as long as you give credit to the original work and respect it, then there shouldn’t be a problem. The readings didn’t change my way of thinking, I have always known to give credit where credit is due. I would not like someone to take my work and not give me credit. 

Sources:

  1. “Guide to Copyright” AIGA. (2001). PDF. New York City; Richard Grefé, AIGA.
  2. “Use of Photography” AIGA. (2001). PDF. New York City; Richard Grefé, AIGA.
  3. “Use of Illustration” AIGA. (2001). PDF. New York City; Richard Grefé, AIGA.

2b)

In the case of “Case Study on Fair Use and Fair Dealing: The Hope Poster Litigation” I believe that Shepard Fairey was in the wrong. It’s simple, give credit where credit is due. I understand taking something for reference, but what Shepard Fairey did was not ethical. Shepard Fairey did not take an ethical approach to his design. In the AIGA “Guide to Copyright” and “Use of Photography,” there are ethical steps that can be followed to use the work of other artists. The right thing would have been to reach out to the photographer and ask them to use their work to create the poster. They could have agreed and made magic together. Instead, Fairey decided to be sneaky and in the end, it just tarnish his legacy.

The HOPE poster is an iconic piece in pop culture history. Although, it is an important piece it does not erase the true story behind it. Now, that I know the true story behind the poster it is important for all designers to know that taking another artist’s work and changing or altering it does not mean you can claim it as your own. It is wrong to profit from it and claim all the glory from it. I found it to be so disrespectful, to not even own up to it. The ethical thing to have done was to contact the original artist and come to a mutual agreement.

Sources:

  1. “Case Study on Fair Use and Fair Dealing: The Hope Poster Litigation” Fisher, W. (2012). PDF. Cambridge; Harvard Journal of Law and Technology.
  2. “Guide to Copyright” AIGA. (2001). PDF. New York City; Richard Grefé, AIGA.
  3. “Use of Photography” AIGA. (2001). PDF. New York City; Richard Grefé, AIGA.

Ethical Reasoning Entry 1

The first journal entry will discuss their experience at the internship related to the ethical guidelines discussed in the AIGA guide.

1a)

Photography is an instrument that democratizes everything, when a picture is shot, it is universally ready to be experienced by all. A moment captured in time, frozen for all of the eternality.

Since I work in a print shop, images work a little differently. From what our policy states, we are not allowed to print out copyrighted images at all. Through copyright laws, by having us print professional images or images that are copyrighted we are profiting off the copyright owner’s work. For instance, if you pay a photographer to take photos of you and you want to print them out we are not legally allowed to. This is because my internship did not get the copyrights to print them out from the photographer. This is the same when people buy invitations from Etsy and go to staples to print them out. We did not get the designer’s permission to make a profit from it, so we cannot print it out for you. My internship, however, provides the employee with a bunch of resources that we can use to get the job done. For instance, if you need a promotional flyer for your construction business, we have a royalty-free database that we can use to produce that flyer. In the AIGA guides, it states that ” Most photographers seek to sell only limited rights.” The majority of the time, the print store will not know what these limited rights are unless we can contact them.

Sources:

  1. “Use of Photography” AIGA. (2001). PDF. New York City; Richard Grefé, AIGA.
  2. “Guide to Copyright” AIGA. (2001). PDF. New York City; Richard Grefé, AIGA.
  3. “Standard Form of Agreement for Design Services” AIGA. (2001). PDF. New York City; Richard Grefé, AIGA.

1b) 

When looking at ethics in a professional setting, it’s my job to keep files confidential. I print out photos for a forensic pathologist. Every time he comes in, we have a verbal agreement that these photos can not be looked at by the public.

 I have not had to sign any confidentiality or non-disclosure agreement. The only thing I had to sign when I started working at the print and marketing department was the agreement on what not to print. This means any copyrighted images. The document I had signed broke down the dos and don’ts of the printing world. It’s a common thing around all print shops, we are not allowed to print out anything without permission. Unless you are the original designer or photographer. Of course, as a designer, I understand the importance of ethics and would never disrespect the original work of a fellow creator. 

Sources:

  1. “Standard Form of Agreement for Design Services” AIGA. (2001). PDF. New York City; Richard Grefé, AIGA.
  2. “Use of Photography” AIGA. (2001). PDF. New York City; Richard Grefé, AIGA.
  3. “Guide to Copyright” AIGA. (2001). PDF. New York City; Richard Grefé, AIGA.