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by Deb Shaw, from the Illustrators Partnership
For more than a decade, there have been periodic attempts to “bring balance” to copyright policy and law. These efforts have been promoted by large corporations and tech companies, and are a euphemism for the goal of completely upending the premise of copyright law.
As the law now stands, each of us, as artists, own the copyright to our work, even if we do not register it with the copyright office. We created it; it is ours.
Rather than protecting us, the creator and artist, the copyright “reformers” want to make public access to creators’ work the law’s main function. They would require creators to register each and every work in which we wish to retain any commercial or personal interest.
Dr. Carla Hayden, the new Librarian of Congress, suddenly fired Maria Pallante, U.S. Register of Copyrights, at the end of last October, and is now soliciting advice on the “knowledge, skills and abilities” people think the new Register should have. It has been widely reported by credible sources that Dr. Hayden favors looser copyright laws.
Artists, musicians, writers and creators have fought to maintain strong copyright laws each time this has surfaced in the past, and have been successful so far. Now it’s time to make our voices heard again.
Dr. Hayden and the Library of Congress has posted a short survey (only 3 questions). The deadline for responses to the survey is tomorrow, January 31, 2017. It is important, as artists, to respond to this survey with a strong call to retain the full protections of copyright as provided for in Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution. If you do not have time to write, the Illustrators’ Partnership has provided suggestions for you to copy and paste.
Here are the links:
- Library of Congress Survey: https://www.research.net/r/RegisterOfCopyrightsNR
- Suggested answers from the Illustrators’ Partnership Orphan Works Blog to use as a template for your own answers or copy and paste: http://ipaorphanworks.blogspot.com/2017/01/suggested-survey-responses-to-librarian.html
- Information and links from the Illustrators’ Partnership, along with a template for a cover letter or answer to Question 4: http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?m=1102063090742&ca=165b62cf-8257-43bb-8faf-4c9754abe631
by Deb Shaw
The Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden has announced the schedule for Cristina Baltayian’s Botanical Art and Illustration classes.
Each session meets four (4) Tuesdays per month, from 10 am – 2 pm (includes lunch break) in the Oak Room:
January 10, 17, 24, 31
February 7, 14, 21, 28
March 7, 14, 21, 28
April 4, 11, 18, 25
May 2, 9, 16, 23
June 6, 13, 20, 27
Cost: $275 Arboretum members per month; $295 non-members per month (includes Arboretum Admission)
To Register please call the Education Department at 626.821.4623 or pay at the class.
These classes explore color pencil, graphite, pen and ink, and watercolor on various papers, vellum and other surfaces. The emphasis is on plant observation, drawing, composition, color theory and matching, and medium techniques. In conjunction with the Botanical Artists Guild of Southern California, students will be studying and portraying many of the Arboretum plant introductions from the last 50 years. The goal is to build a collection of paintings that will celebrate and document the invaluable contribution of the Los Angeles Arboretum to the state of California.
The Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden is located at 301 North Baldwin Ave, Arcadia, CA 91007, 626.821.3222.
by Arillyn Moran-Lawrence, posted by Deb Shaw
Website for “Ko; An Ethnobotanical Guide to Hawaiian Sugarcane Varieties,” by Noa Kekuewa Lincoln, PhD., © 2016, University of Hawai’i, Manoa, all rights reserved.
Arillyn Moran-Lawrence, will have a pen and ink drawing of Hawaiian Sugar Cane in the forthcoming book Ko; An Ethnobotanical Guide to Hawaiian Sugarcane Varieties. The book will be published by University of Hawaii Press, a nonprofit scholarly publisher.
The author is Noa Kekuewa Lincoln, PhD, Assistant Professor at the University of Hawai’i, Manoa.
About the author of “Ko; An Ethnobotanical Guide to Hawaiian Sugarcane Varieties”
Dr. Noa Kekuewa Lincoln is of native Hawaiian, German, and Japanese decent, born in Kealakekua on Hawai‘i Island. He received his BS in Environmental Engineering from Yale University, and his PhD in Environment and Resources from Stanford University, where his work focused on traditional agricultural development pathways and management strategies. His postdoctoral work examined traditional values and practices of ecosystems for food in Aotearoa. Noa has worked in marine and terrestrial ecosystem restoration and conservation around the Pacific, and has coupled these efforts with cultural and environmental education and community engagement. He has worked on traditional Hawaiian ethnobotany and agriculture and has implemented projects facilitated through a variety of partnerships with community organizations. He is recognized as an emerging expert in Hawaiian crops and cropping systems. His primary interests are in combining traditional and modern knowledge of land management to evaluate social utility, rather than economic, contributions. He is currently a research fellow with Ngai Tahu Research Centre at the University of Canterbury and an Assistant Professor at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa with a focus on Indigenous Crops and Cropping Systems.
by Joan Keesey and Deb Shaw
Eschscholzia californica, California Poppies, watercolor, © Joan Keesey, 2016, all rights reserved.
Joan Keesey will be exhibiting her botanical watercolors at the Theodore Payne Foundation for Wild Flowers and Native Plants from Saturday, January 21, through Saturday, April 22, 2017.
The exhibition will focus on California native plants blooming in and around the Theodore Payne Foundation and in the Santa Monica Mountains.
Everyone is invited to the opening reception for the exhibition, on Saturday, January 21, 2017, from 1 – 3 pm.
The Theodore Payne Foundation is located at 10459 Tuxford Street, Sun Valley, California 91352, 818.768.1802. Hours are Tuesday – Saturday, 8:30 am – 4:30 pm. Theodore Payne is closed Sunday and Monday each week. On-leash dogs are welcome. There is no admission fee.
Theodore Payne will be hosting their annual native Winter Plant Sale Thursday – Saturday, January 26 – 28, from 8:30 am – 4:30 pm all three days. Everyone will receive discounts for all three days, plus receive expert advice from Theodore Payne staff and volunteers. Members receive 15 percent off plants, seed and Theodore Payne wear all day. Non-members receive 10 percent off plants, seed and Theodore Payne wear after 11:00 am. Not yet a member? Join at the door! Shop early for best selection.
Bring your own boxes and wagons, see the art exhibition and purchase native California plants.
BAGSC News 