Two  Out  of  Three  Ain’t  Bad:  Reduce,  Reuse,  and  Recycle.

Title of Anchoring Art: Campbell’s Soup Cans.

Artist: Andy Warhol
Media: Synthetic polymer paint. 1962. 508 x 406 mm.
Current Location of Exhibit: Museum of Modern Art, New York.

Thesis: I will argue that American artists such as Andy Warhol, Sherry Levine, Barbara Kruger
and Cindy Sherman were artistically justified in appropriating art for their own creative
endeavors.

3. Introduction

4. Copyright and public domain as it pertains to art appropriation

5. Setting the stage for art appropriation

6. Examples of art appropriation

8. Legal challenges involving art appropriation

9. Summation and closing

10. Bibliography
 
Introduction

Few artists have achieved more than “fifteen minutes of fame” to the degree of the artist who
coined that phrase. Andy Warhol and other Pop Art artists challenged what constitutes art for
both the artist and viewer through the use of art appropriation. Setting ethics aside the issue begs
an answer to the question: were American artists such as Andy Warhol, Sherry Levine, Jeff
Koon, Barbara Kruger and Cindy Sherman justified in appropriating art in the pursuit of their
own art?

Warhol in New York's Stable gallery, 1964, amid the Brillo box sculptures at the centre of
the scandal. Photograph: Getty Images (Warhol’s box of Tricks)

Arthur Danto, a professor of philosophy at Columbia attended the 1964 Warhol exhibition at
Eleanor Ward’s Stable Gallery. After leaving the show he said it was, “a transformative
experience for me. It turned me into a philosopher of art,” (Menand, Top of the Pops). In essence
he was moved by what he described as the arrival of Pop Art. How could one hundred oversize
copies of store bought boxes transform a hardened art veteran such as Arthur Danto? What led
Andy Warhol to appropriate commercial packages for his work?

This transformation did not magically appear out of thin air at the 1964 exhibition. Previous
generations of artists set the stage for what would become known as Pop Art. Shock and awe
have become common tactics utilized by twentieth century Western artists to generate attention
for their artwork. One way to generate this attention involves the reuse or recycling of artwork
created by others as Andy Warhol did. Using the artwork of another certainly falls into the
shocking category. Within the art world it is known as art appropriation. Artists who make

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modifications to “ready-made” or pre-existing artwork or objects in pursuit of their own art are
in fact appropriating art.

Modern day art historian, Tom Williams, sheds further light on the developments towards the
Pop Art movement and the use of art appropriation (Williams, Appropriation Art):

“Although the antecedents of appropriation art have been traced back to the art
historical allusions in works by Edouard Manet or Gustave Flaubert’s Dictionnaire
des idées reçues (1913), its origins have often been found in early 20th-century avant-
garde practices such as collage, photomontage and, especially, the ready-made. These
procedures involved the use of found objects as the raw materials or the final form of
the work of art. Among these, Marcel Duchamp’s development of the ready-made in
1913 was particularly important for later manifestations of appropriation art. In his
famous Fountain from 1917, for example, he adopted the pseudonym R. Mutt and
submitted a urinal for an exhibition of the Society of Independent Artists in New York.”

Art appropriation in the 20th century begins with Dada artist Marcel
Duchamp’s “ready-made” art works such as “Fountain,” (Pohl 346).
With the change of one letter on a common urinal echoing his
pseudonym, Marcel Duchamp initiates a trend towards art
appropriation. Yet, it would take the Pop Art movement to make it
ubiquitous. Andy Warhol flagrantly made use of “ready-made” images
and commercial art, challenging conventions of originality in art (Pohl
346). Sherry Levine followed up in 1981 by snapping a picture of a
Public Domain photograph taken by Walker Evans. She then
copyrighted it as her own work without making a single modification
Fountain, Marcel to it. Thus, “Fountain” serves as the nascence of art appropriation by
Duchamp, 1917 American artists, while Levine’s copy of a photograph arguably
provides the ultimate conclusion.

Copyright and Public Domain as it Pertains to Art Appropriation  

Most countries have their own laws regarding how to obtain a Copyright and how it protects a
created asset. A U.S. Copyright protects “original works of authorship” including literary,
dramatic, musical, artistic, and certain other intellectual works within the jurisdiction of the
United States of America (Copyright Basics). The original author has the right to (Copyright
Basics):

Reproduce their work.

Prepare derivative works.

Distrubute copies of their work.

Perform or display the work publicly.

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 Authorize others to use the work as above.

In addition to the aforementioned rights there are basic protections granted to the author and their
original work by the U.S. Copyright Office.

Original, tangible works are automatically copyrighted upon completion of the work.

Works need not be published to receive Copyright protection.

Derivative works of copyrighted work (vis-à-vis art appropriation) must contain some
creative act by the artist to make it original.

Works originally created on or after January 1, 1978 are automatically protected the
author’s life plus an additional 70 years after the author’s death. In the case of multiple
authors the additional 70 years starts after the death of the last surviving authors death.
For works made for hire, anonymous and pseudonymous works (unless the author’s
identity is revealed in Copyright Office records), the duration of Copyright will be 95
years from publication or 120 years from creation, whichever is shorter (Copyright
Basics).

Works originally created before January 1, 1978 are brought under statute and now have
similar protections as works created after January 1, 1978 (Copyright Basics). It should
be noted that there are some arcane laws that still pertain to these older copyrights due to
the laws under which they were originally copyrighted. However, in no event would any
Copyright be subject to expiration prior to December 31st, 2002 (Copyright Basics).

Anything not protected by Copyright is considered public domain. Works in the public domain
may be used freely without permission of the former copyright owner (Copyright Definitions).
See Sherry Levine under Examples of Art Appropriation for an interesting exploration of
Copyright and works from the public domain.

Setting the Stage for Art Appropriation

Avant-Garde
Artists coined this term in the latter half of the 19th century to reflect the efforts of artists who
challenged the status quo while attempting to improve society. They did so through creations of
experimentation that forced people to see things and consider objects in new ways (Pohl 323).

Dada
Within the Avant-Garde movement exists the short-lived Dada movement. Dadaist era work
assaulted all aspects of art: the viewer, the object, and even the background of the artist “as a
function of reproduction,” (Pohl 345). Duchamp challenged the world as to what would be
considered art. His work acts as a catalyst for the future generation of artists in the Pop Art and
Post Modernist eras.

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Pop Art
Many art historians and critics have argued the merits of Pop Art as fine art or a by product of
consumer culture that took root in the 1950’s and flourished 1960’s (Pohl 499). The
appropriation of “ready-made” art and imagery became common. Men played a vital role in the
creation of this movement. They pillaged what many considered the sole realm of female
consumption: shopping, cleaning, domesticity, cooking, etc. (Pohl 499). Andy Warhol’s first
exhibition depicting 100 painted boxes covered with commercial art attests to proliferation of art
appropriation.

Examples of Art Appropriation

Duchamp became known for using “found” or “ready-made” pre-

existing objects as mentioned earlier. Duchamp’s L.H.O.O.Q.
painting serves as another example and perhaps one of the most
well known examples of art appropriation (Naumann, “Duchamp,
Marcel”). He started with the Mona Lisa and added a moustache
and goatee to her face. The title is a clever play of words in French
meaning “She has a hot ass,” (Duchamp, L.H.O.O.Q. 1919).

What makes this more interesting is the appropriation of Da

Vinci’s painting, stroke for stroke. Then making marks that would
traditionally be considered vandalism. However, there is no
Copyright violation as over 95 years have passed since the death of
the original artist in 1519, thus the work has entered the Public
Domain. L.H.O.O.Q., Marcel
Duchamp, 1919
Barbara Kruger’s work Untitled, (You Invest in the Divinity of the Masterpiece) provides a well
known example of art appropriation (Kruger, Barbara). In this work we see the rhythmic breaks
applied horizontally upon arguably one of the most recognized works of art in the entire world;
Creation of Adam from Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel ceiling mural. Her economical style
emphasizes and at the same time criticizes the moment of creation. By using this recognizable
work in her work, she harnessed the entire idea encapsulated by Michelangelo’s painting. God
creating Adam extends as that moment of creativity in all endeavors and by using this image she
is not required to start from scratch. Her creativity comes from her use and placement of
typography. She draws the viewer into the painting through the statement “You invest in the
divinity of the masterpiece”. As a Feminist work of art the absence of a female is a palpably
missing as well. Why did God choose to create man first? Her answer seems to be “because a
man painted the image.”

More is said about her views of women and their place in art through her strategy of
appropriating commercial art. An example is her untitled image featuring a large hand holding a
card that reads, “I shop therefore I am.” This is clearly a reference to René Descartes who stated,
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“I think therefore I am,” (Appropriation — Postmodernist Strategy 2). This calls into question
the role of women in the production of art that traditionally had been
in the hands of men. Specifically, why are women not proportionally
represented as artists and purveyors of culture? This is what makes
this Feminist art or the art of intentionally stressing women’s
concerns (Morgan, Feminist art). Linda Nochlin asserts in her 1971
essay “Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists” (Silvers,
Feminism)?

“…that the answer lies not in women’s lack of artistic talent

compared to men, but in their comparative lack of encouragement
and in the absence of opportunities to acquire the knowledge and
skills to produce art like men.”
Untitled, (You Invest in
the Divinity of the Another artist that liberally
Masterpiece. Barbara utilized art appropriation and
Kruger, 1982 whose work is considered
“Feminist” is Cindy Sherman. Sherman is a photographer
with a long career of exploring the ways in which men
and women are visually represented (Appropriation-
Postmodernist Strategy 1). The use of her own image in
the place of Bacchus causes us to question the role of
Sick Bacchus, Sick Bacchus,
women as artists because she has inserted herself into the
Sherman Caravaggio
male dominated history of art. This work also raises
awareness as a “feminist” work about the privileged educational access men have enjoyed in
Western culture that has excluded women from being active participants (Appropriation-
Postmodernist Strategy 1).

Sherry Levine and her use of the Great Depression era FSA
photographs taken by Walker Evans illustrate an interesting
conundrum for appropriated art. These images are not protected
under Copyright and are part of the public domain (Walker, Copy
Catfight). Unlike most appropriated art there is no modification or
significant changes to the work from the original. In fact, “After
Walker Evans” is a photograph of the original photograph by Walker
Evans. Levine then copyrighted the work as her own. Of course
anyone can make use of public domain works but it does raise
concerns over the propriety of doing so.

After Walker Evans, Delacour asserts (Delacour, Appropriation and Walker Evans):
Sherrie Levine, 1981
“The issues surrounding postmodernist appropriation, and critiques
of authorship and aura, are central to Sherrie Levine’s daring, seminal deconstruction of
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 the modernist myths of originality in many of her refabrications of well-known works by a
gallery of male artistic eminences. Levine’s After Walker Evans (1981) is controversial
because its principal conceptual strategy goes beyond simple appropriation: it bluntly
challenges the authenticity of a work of art, the nature of authorship itself, and the
sanctity of copyrighted material.”

Legal Challenges involving Art Appropriation

It is hardly surprising that artists who rely heavily upon appropriated artwork are themselves
challenged by the original artists or owners of the Copyright. This is the case with Andy
Warhol’s Brillo boxes
discussed earlier. The original
artist, James Harvey attended
the exhibition at Eleanor
Ward’s gallery and stated that
he was amused by Warhol’s
use of his work. However, the
owner of Brillo pad sued Andy
Warhol and The Stable Gallery
for infringement (Warhol’s box
of tricks). It is hard to say how
the case would have turned out
because it was settled at about
the same time that James
Harvey succumbed to blood
cancer in 1965 (Warhol’s box of Obama Hope Poster, Shepard Fairey
tricks).

A more recent case taken up by the Associated Press involves the poster used during the Obama
for President campaign leading up to the election in 2008. The artist of the poster is Shepard
Fairey and the Associated Press asserts that Fairey pilfered their artwork. Tom Gralish identified
the original Associated Press freelancer as Mannie Garcia (Delacour, Appropriation and Walker
Evans). An expert on the rights of photographers, Carolyn E. Wright, who wrote the
“Photographer’s Legal Guide” sees this case as a clear infringement of the photographer Mannie
Garcia and the Associated Press. This case is still working its way through the courts. However,
it is unlikely that Shepard Fairey will be found guilty as there is what I would consider sufficient
changes to the photograph that make it original artwork as stipulated by the U.S. Copyright
Office document (Copyright Basics).

Summation and Closing  

The use of pre-existing artwork is but another tool in the artists tool box today. As color and
medium say something about a work of art, so too does use of “ready-made” art. American
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artists and their challenges to the world through the use of toilets, and banal commercial images
brought about a revolution as to what could or even should be considered art. Yet, it remains
only a tool, used to give context to a new story, or raise awareness of injustice as in Kruger’s
Feminist work.

There are protections in place for authors of original work under U.S. law as well as laws from
other countries around the world. Yet, the line is waveringly thin in protecting the essence of an
artists work as evidenced in Shepard Fairey’s case. Simple digital manipulation of a photograph
may indeed provide the significant change necessary to consider it a new work, as opposed to a
derivative. It may be legal to do so and yet be shady or someone unethical or fair to the original
artist.

Artists are justified to use the tool of art appropriation, by law and precedent now. The only
questionable concerns that remain lie in fairness to the original author while adhering to the laws
designed to protect them.

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Annotated Bibliography
 

Andy Warhol: Campbell’s Soup Cans, synthetic polymer paint on 32 canvases, each 508×406
mm, 1962 (New York, Museum of Modern Art); © 2007 Andy Warhol Foundation for the
Visual Arts/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York, photo © Museum of Modern
Art/Licensed by SCALA /Art Resource, NY. Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online. 24 Aug.
2010 <http://www.oxfordartonline.com/subscriber/article/img/grove/art/F018131>.

"Appropriation — Postmodernist Strategy 1." Online Lectures: American Art History ART3010
XC. 24 August 2010 <http://myeclassonline.com/>.

"Appropriation — Postmodernist Strategy 2." Online Lectures: American Art History ART3010
XC. 24 August 2010 <http://myeclassonline.com/>.

"Appropriation — Postmodernist Strategy 3." Online Lectures: American Art History ART3010
XC. 24 August 2010 <http://myeclassonline.com/>.

Copyright Basics. 2010. U.S. Copyright Office. Library of Congress. 18 Sep. 2010
<http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ01.pdf>.

Copyright Definitions. Rev. 2. 2010. U.S. Copyright Office. Library of Congress. 18 Sep. 2010
<http://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-definitions.html>.

Delacour, Jonathon. Appropriation and Walker Evans. Jonathon Delacour the heart of things.
Feb 2009. 05 September 2010 ,http://weblog.delacour.net/photography/appropriation-art-
and-walker-evans/>

Duchamp, Marcel. L.H.O.O.Q. 1919. Succession Marcel Duchamp, ARS, N.Y./ADAGP.

Marcelduchamp.net. 11 Sep. 2010 <http://www.marcelduchamp.net/L.H.O.O.Q.php>.

Kalina, Richard. "Lichtenstein's Indian Territory." Art in America (Vol. 94, No. 4). April 2006:
142-147. SIRS Renaissance. Web. 24 Aug 2010.

Kleiner, Fred S., and Christin J. Mamiya. Gardner’s Art Through The Ages. 12th ed. Belmont:
Wadsworth, 2005.

Kleiner, Fred. Gardner’s Art Through the Ages: A Concise Western History. 2nd ed. Boston, MA:
Wadsworth, 2010.

"Kruger, Barbara." Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online. 24 Aug. 2010
<http://www.oxfordartonline.com/subscriber/article/grove/art/T048097>.

Lerner, Jesse. He Ain't Heavy, He's My Heritage: Gabriel Orozco's "Photogravity." Afterimage.
March/April 2001: 13-15. SIRS Renaissance. Web. 24 Aug 2010.

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Levy, Adrian and Scott-Clark, Cathy. Warhol’s box of tricks. Grove Art Online. Oxford Art
Online. 11 Sep. 2010 <http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2010/aug/21/warhol-brillo-
boxes-scandal-fraud>.

Livingstone, Marco. "Warhol, Andy." Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online. 24 Aug. 2010
<http://www.oxfordartonline.com/subscriber/article/grove/art/T090699>.

Meat Loaf Biography. The Biography Channel UK. © 2010. 11 Sep. 2010
<http://www.thebiographychannel.co.uk/biographies/meat-loaf.html>.

Meggs, Philip B., and Purvis, Alston W. Meggs’ History of Graphic Design. 4th ed. New Jersey:
John Wiley & Sons, 2006.

Morgan, Ann Lee. "Feminist art" Oxford University Press, 2007. The Oxford Dictionary of
American Art and Artists. Oxford Reference Online. Art Institute Online. 18 September
2010 <http://www.oxfordreference.com/views/ENTRY.html?subview=Main&entry=t238.e4
44>

Naumann, Francis M. "Duchamp, Marcel." Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online. 24 Aug. 2010
<http://www.oxfordartonline.com/subscriber/article/grove/art/T023894>.

Pittolo, Véronique. "Sherman, Cindy." Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online. 24 Aug. 2010
<http://www.oxfordartonline.com/subscriber/article/grove/art/T078200>.

Pohl, Frances K. Framing America: A Social History of American Art. 2nd Edition. New York,
New York: Thames and Hudson, 2008.

Silvers, Anita, et al. "Feminism." Encyclopedia of Aesthetics. Ed. Michael Kelly. Oxford Art
Online. 18 Sep. 2010 <http://www.oxfordartonline.com/subscriber/article/opr/t234/e0207>.

Sholette, Gregory. "Authenticity(Squared)--REPOHistory: The Anatomy of an...Art Project."

New Art Examiner. Nov. 1999: 20+. SIRS Renaissance. Web. 24 Aug 2010.

Thiroux, Jacques P., and Krasemann, Keith W. Ethics Theory and Practice. 10th Edition. Upper
Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2009.

Walker, Jesse. "Copy Catfight." Reason. March 2000: 44-51. SIRS Researcher. Web. 24 Aug
2010.

Williams, Tom. "Simmons, Laurie." Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online. 24 Aug. 2010
<http://www.oxfordartonline.com/subscriber/article/grove/art/T2086059>.

Williams, Tom. "Appropriation Art." Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online. 24 Aug. 2010
<http://www.oxfordartonline.com/subscriber/article/grove/art/T2086713>.

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