The Conflict Of Copyright Protection Of Street Art: Authorship And Ownership Challenge

Komal Jain, Institute of Law, Nirma University

ABSTRACT

The progress of street art can be observed and measured in various ways, including its evolution in styles, techniques, cultural impact, and the recognition it receives. Street art holds significant importance on various levels, contributing to cultural, social, and individual aspects of society. This paper first throws light on the concept of artistic work and street art and what are the justifications and requirements to consider street art as artistic work. When we talk about copyright, the first question that comes up is about authorship and ownership. In the case of street art, the conflicting question is who will have the authorship and ownership of the art created. This further gives rise to a conflict between protecting creators rights and owners’ property rights. Hence, this paper also looks at the challenges faced by street art when it comes to its protection. This paper also discusses the use of fair use doctrine for the use of street art without the permission of the artists and the moral rights of the artists of the street art. It is still difficult to find a harmonic balance between legal requirements, the need for artistic expression, and the preservation of public art. The legal system is quite unsettled on the concept of protection of street art under the copyright regime, and there are several loopholes in the protection.