Re-evaluating the art practice of appropriation from a copyright law perspective

Contemporary art can fascinate, irritate or even cause embarrassment and frustration. Art pieces, such as the ones produced by Richard Prince or Sherrie Levinehave, recently attracted attention in the world of the postmodern art market as well as in courts by challenging the binarism of original and copy, since they seem to ignore major concepts in copyright law, such as originality, authorship and personal execution of an artwork. In light of the above, this chapter explores the possibilities and pitfalls connected with the creative use of pre-existing artworks or other cultural or raw material with themes limited to appropriation and cultural borrowing and exchanging. To evaluate the legal impact of the practice of appropriation, it is necessary to clarify the concept itself in order to assess its contemporary importance in the cultural field. Then, some important legal cases that incorporate appropriation into law are demonstrated and some concluding observations are offered.