Ugo Mulas, Alberto Giacometti installant ses oeuvres à la Biennale de Venise, 1962, coll.Fondation Giacometti, Paris.
© Succession Giacometti (Fondation Giacometti, Paris et ADAGP, Paris)
© Ugo Mulas

Image right

Intellectual property

The author's rights

Fondation Giacometti -  The author's rights

The author's right is a human right protected, as the right of property, by the European Convention on Human Rights (Protocol n°1) and by national constitutions.

The author's right is protected by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act (CDPA) in the UK, by the Urheberrechtsgestz (UrG) in germany, by the section 17 of the US Code etc.

The author's right allows the author and his heirs and legatees to forbid any reproduction of his work, be it in two or three dimensions, be it exact or uncomplete, any communication to the public.

Exceptions exists in limited cases, listed in the national laws.

Moral prerogatives attached to the author's right entitle the author to be identified as author, to object to derogatory treatment of the work or to false attribution.

The author's right belong to the author and, after his death, to his heirs and legatees. In principle, it doesn't belong to the owner of the physical work, to the museums or to the persons having photographed the work.

Brands

The Fondation Giacometti, Paris, holds a series of brands, registered at the French, European and international levels, and including:

  • the name of the artist;
  • the name of the Fondation Giacometti and the Institut Giacometti;
  • the logos.

Frequently asked questions about copyright

Fondation Giacometti -   Frequently asked questions about copyright

Ugo Mulas, Exposition, Alberto Giacometti, Biennale, Venise, 1962, coll.Fondation Giacometti, Paris.
© Succession Giacometti (Fondation Giacometti, Paris et ADAGP, Paris)
© Ugo Mulas

In which case is it necessary to obtain the agreement of the rights holders?
Any use of the work, the name or the image of Alberto Giacometti, and any adaptation of his work, must be the subject to a written authorization of the holders of his rights.
Warning: a restoration is not an innocuous act. He commits the right of respect for the work. Supervision by rights holders, or their written agreement, is always preferable.

What is the duration of this exclusive right?
From the creation of the work, the monopoly of exploitation that lasted the artist's entire life for his benefit, still remains for seventy years after his death, for the exclusive benefit of his successors.

 

Are there any duties imposed on the rightholder during the term of the exclusive rights?
Yes. The exercise of moral rights requires the heirs to uphold the integrity of the artist's work. Abuse in the exploitation or non-exploitation of the work is sanctioned by the Code de la Propriété intellectuelle.

 

What happens after the expiry of the exclusive rights of exploitation?
Seventy years after the death of the artist, the work disclosed during his lifetime enters the public domain, which means that the reproduction of the original works disclosed is free, provided that the reproduction respects the moral right.

 

What is moral rights?
Moral rights include the right to respect for the name, that is to say the right to paternity, or the right to oblige to always mention the name of the author of the work when it is exploited.

It also contains the right to respect for the integrity of the work, including, in particular, the right to require any exploitation to remain faithful to the original model and not to undermine its image by inappropriate exploitation.

The moral right of the artist is perpetual; it never goes out. Even after the entry of the work in the public domain, this right makes it possible to control for example the fidelity to the original model or the respect of the reproduction material wanted by the artist. It also controls the name under which the work is broadcast.

To search for a work, consult the Alberto Giacometti Database