Copyright of Art Piece – Who Owns It?

copyright

Pokemon Cartridge Image taken from Canva under’s Canva’s License – Erik Mclean from Pexels

Written by Burt Skiba

May 10, 2023

Copyright of Art Piece – Who Owns it?

This is a very interesting question when it comes to buying artwork, reselling artwork, or making copies of that artwork. When an artist create an original work such as an art piece copyright automatically attaches itself to that work. Copyrights last the life of the author plus 70 years. I mention this because if the copyright of that art piece is up and in the public domain then copying the work is legal. However, if the copyrighted work is still active then the owner has the right to exclude others from reproducing and selling the copyrighted work. So, when using someone else’s artwork make sure you have a license to use or it is in the public domain before using. 

Selling Original Art

When an artist sells an original art piece they are selling that piece once with no copies made. The purchaser owns that sole piece of art as the original creating value in that piece. However, the artist usually does not transfer their copyright ownership in that piece when selling that piece. Therefore, the owner has a limit license to display and own that piece unless the artist assigns the copyright over to that individual. 

Creating Copies

Creating copies and selling them as prints of the original can give the artist the opportunity to get that piece out to the public instead of one individual. However, the copies that are sold only give the owner the right to own that copy and to not recreate that art piece and sell it unless it is in the public domain. 

Nintendo Jigglypuff Trademark Battle: How a Gaming Giant Lost Rights to Its Own Pokémon Character

Nintendo Jigglypuff Trademark Battle: How a Gaming Giant Lost Rights to Its Own Pokémon Character

Nintendo’s $600 Mistake: How a Gaming Giant Lost Rights to Its Own Pokémon Character
In one of the most surprising trademark disputes of 2025, Nintendo found itself fighting to cancel a “JIGGLYPUFF” trademark registration—owned not by the gaming company, but by a Chinese jewelry business. Despite nearly three decades of using the beloved Pokémon character since 1996, Nintendo never filed a federal trademark application for Jigglypuff, allowing Yiwu FeiMeng Jewelry Company to secure the rights in 2022.

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Burt Skiba

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