Les veritables enjeux de l'appropriation artistique au regard du droit d'auteur /

Artistic appropriation constitutes a technique that has been widely used by artists for centuries. It seems to have transcended most artistic movements. Appropriation consists of reproducing a pre-existing work, or of being inspired by it, in order to create a new and distinct work of art. Appropriation poses several problems for copyright law because it challenges the basic principle of copyright which provides that a substantial reproduction of a work without the authorisation of the copyright owner amounts to an infringement. Unlike the United States where it was held that an appropriationist work infringed the copyright of a photographer, the Canadian jurisprudence has not decided the matter. While there has been no formal stand, it seems that artistic appropriation is prohibited by copyright law in Canada. The author argues that this form of censorship is mainly due to the current state of the law which is not adapted to visual arts. Therefore, important changes must occur. Considering their important place in the visual art's world, appropriationist works deserve to be protected by copyright law