Legal Guide for the Visual Artist (Fifth Edition) [Paperback]

Tad Crawford (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 14, 2010

This classic guide for artists is completely revised and updated to provide an in-depth view of the legal issues facing the visual artist today and provides practical legal guidance for any visual artist involved with creative work. Among the many new topics covered in this comprehensive guide are: detailed coverage of the myriad developments in copyright (including online copyright registration procedures and use of art on the Internet); changes in laws protecting artists in artist-gallery relationships are explained in depth; scope of First Amendment protections for graffiti art and the sale of art in public spaces; detailed as well as new cases dealing with art and privacy; and a model contract for Web site design and much more.

The book also covers copyrights, moral rights, contracts, licensing, sales, special risks and protections for art and artists, book publishing, video and multimedia works, leases, taxation, estate planning, museums, collecting, grants, and how to find the best professional advisers and attorneys. In addition, the book suggests basic strategies for negotiation, gives information to help with further action, contains many sample legal forms and contracts, and shows how to locate artists' groups and Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts organizations.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This is an indispensable handbook for the visual art community."--(Starred review) Library Journal

"Legal Guide for the Visual Artist by Tad Crawford arms artists with a broad general knowledge of most legal issues they’re likely to face, and includes raft of legal forms that should address many foreseeable legal needs. Starting with chapters on traditional intellectual property—copyright, trademarks, trade dress, and some patents—Crawford delves into more esoteric aspect of intellectual property such as moral rights and the relatively recent Visual Artists Rights Act ("VARA"). The author balances these more personal and insightful historical portions with current issues facing the modern artist, such as the increasing likelihood of an artist being both artist and producer and the pitfalls that come with this dual role. Multimedia and the breadth of what that term means is also touched upon in the book. Legal Guide for the Visual Artist deserves a place in your library if you do any type of artistic work at all."—Logan Lo, Esq., The New York Journal of Books

About the Author

Tad Crawford grew up in the artists' colony of Woodstock, New York. He is the author of many nonfiction books and his writing has appeared in venues such as Art in America, the Café Irreal, Confrontation, Communication Arts, Family Circle, Glamour, Guernica, the Nation, and Writer's Digest. The founder and publisher of Allworth Press, he lives in New York City.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Allworth Press; Fifth Edition edition (September 14, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1581157428
• ISBN-13: 978-1581157420
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 0.6 x 11 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #244,275 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #65 in Books > Law > Intellectual Property > Patent, Trademark & Copyright
  • #81 in Books > Arts & Photography > Business of Art

More About the Author

Allworth Press publisher and founder Tad Crawford is an author, attorney, and artists' rights advocate.

His most recent book is the novel A Floating Life ("strangely shimmering..." -Kirkus Review), which is published by Arcade Publishing.

Born in New York City, Crawford grew up in the artists colony of Woodstock, New York. Interested in writing both fiction and nonfiction, he majored in economics at Tufts College and graduated from Columbia Law School in February 1971. ("That explains the unusual amalgam of my activities," Crawford says. "A lot of legal skills are crucial for helping the artist and for running a publishing company. Of course, writing is an excellent background for publishing. So it's come together very well.")

Crawford clerked for a judge of the New York Court of Appeals, the state's highest court, then went to work for a small general law firm in New York City while writing and teaching writing and literature at the School of Visual Arts. Until he took the teaching assignment at the School of Visual Arts and learned of the need for materials to help artists understand their rights, he had not envisioned being an advocate of artists' rights.

"I found nothing in print to help artists deal with such legal matters as copyrights, contracts, income taxes, the 'hobby loss' problem, estate planning, or even how to get grants," recalls Crawford. And so, responding to what he saw as "an extreme need," he wrote a book dealing with those and other relevant issues, titling it Legal Guide for the Visual Artist and using it as a text for the "Law and the Visual Artist" course that he taught at the School of Visual Arts. Published in 1977, Legal Guide for the Visual Artist is now in its fourth edition and has one hundred thousand copies in print.

He followed this with The Writer's Legal Guide in 1978 (which has been updated and reissued with The Authors Guild as co-publisher and Kay Murray, the General Counsel for the Authors Guild, as co-author). With Arie Kopelman he wrote Selling Your Photography in 1980 and Selling Your Graphic Design and Illustration in 1981. At the same time Crawford served as Chairman of the Board for the Foundation for the Community of Artists, legislative counsel for the Copyright Justice Coalition (which had many arts groups as members), and general counsel for the Graphic Artists Guild. In 1982 Crawford was asked to help publish books for some of the organizations that he had represented as an attorney. In response, he became publisher of Madison Square Press, which issued annuals for such artists'organizations as the Society of Illustrators, the Society of Publication Designers, the Art Directors Club of New York, and the Art Directors Club of Los Angeles.

In 1988 he decided to strike out in a new direction, "to create a press that would offer the kind of information that was more like what I had taught, written about, and lobbied for." Crawford saw the need for a publishing company that would provide practical information to creative professionals, such as artists, photographers, designers, and authors. He knew first hand the issues faced every day by such creative people and could envision a spectrum of books to help them survive and prosper professionally.

In the Fall of 1989, Crawford published Allworth Press's first book, a revised edition of his classic Legal Guide for the Visual Artist. Ten more titles followed in 1990, offering information about marketing, promotion, pricing, copyright, contracts, health and safety, and much more. The first edition of Business and Legal Forms for Photographers was published in 1991. "The information in these books,"Crawford says, "can make all the difference in terms of success and prosperity." Today Allworth Press has a backlist of more than 250 books, publishes 12-15 books annually, and employs a staff of six very talented people.

Crawford's last involvement as an active lobbyist was in 1986, and he's given up active practice of the law to devote his energies to his publishing and his writing. The full list of books that he has authored follows:

A Floating Life
AIGA Professional Practices in Graphic Design (editor)
The Artist-Gallery Partnership (with Susan Mellon)
Business and Legal Forms for Crafts
Business and Legal Forms for Fine Artists
Business and Legal Forms for Graphic Designers (with Eva Doman Bruck)
Business and Legal Forms for Illustrators
Business and Legal Forms for Interior Designers (with Eva Doman Bruck)
Business and Legal Forms for Industrial Designers (with Eva Doman Bruck and Carl W. Battle)
Business and Legal Forms for Photographers
Legal Guide for the Visual Artist
The Money Mentor
The Secret Life of Money
Selling Your Photography (with Arie Kopelman)
Selling Your Graphic Design and Illustration (with Arie Kopelman)
Starting Your Career as a Freelance Photographer
The Writer's Legal Guide (with Kay Murray)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Easel Companion December 3, 2010

By Bonnie Neely

Format:Paperback

Legal Guide for the visual Artist by Tad Crawford is the newly revised version of his book which has been a trusted help for artists for decades. He gives great legal tips for the artist about rights, copyright, avoiding disputes, privacy releases, fair use, work for hire,and leases and much more. He has excellent guidance in how to keep track of business expenses for deductions to save taxes. He also tells how to access Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts if you can't afford to hire a lawyer. This is a MUST for all types of visual artists, for print , galleries, or online

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A must-have reference and resource for all types of professional visual artists September 18, 2010

By Midwest Book Review

Format:Paperback

Attorney Tad Crawford presents Legal Guide for the Visual Artist, a must-have reference and resource for all types of professional visual artists, including photographers, painters, printmakers, designers, sculptors, illustrators, cartoonists, web designers, and more. Now in its fifth updated edition, Legal Guide for the Visual Artist covers what American law has to say about copyright, sales/commissions/rentals of original art, taxes, grants and public support available for the arts, and much more. Written in plain terms to be accessible to artists of all backgrounds, Legal Guide for the Visual Artist is invaluable as a preventative measure for staying on the right side of the law, and also as an excellent brush-up resource to consult prior to visiting an attorney who charges tremendous fees per hour. Highly recommended.

5.0 out of 5 stars Product for Daughters College January 16, 2013

By Debbie Palmatier

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

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