Kory Bing!

New page! This one has FEELINGS in it.

Tue, 29 May 2012 00:49:04 -0700

lexxercise: softowl: All right, I have received permission to post these pictures. Thanks to the...

Mon, 28 May 2012 12:00:24 -0700

softowl:

All right, I have received permission to post these pictures. Thanks to the person at Anime North who sent me these.

This was the booth in question. As you can see they were selling ugly, poorly made HS bootleg items, plus lots of others (Adventure Time, etc).

Let me be really clear here: I don’t like it when people sell their fanart prints or handmade fan items, but I can understand. This, however, is an act of pure scumbaggery.

This is apparently the “company” selling these items. I urge everyone out there not to buy from them at any convention they may attend, and to ask others to do the same. Don’t support thieves.

I wanted to reblog this as a follow-up to my previous signal boost, seeing as though the offending vendor has been identified, along with some supplemental discussion inspired by related posts. I’m sorry I can’t hide this wall of text under a Read More tag, but this is an image post and thems the breaks.

Distribution Rights

Most everyone who follows me has likely read my post on US copyright law with regards to creative intellectual property.

While things like fanart and cosplay are difficult to pass definitive judgment on for a variety of reasons, copyright law is crystal clear on the distribution of the original property itself. By law, the creator of the content is the only entity who can distribute said content in any way, shape, or form.

The creator doesn’t have to make some sort of public statement forbidding this kind of activity. This isn’t an “I can do it unless I’m told not to” scenario. Their content is automatically protected by copyright law the moment it appears in a fixed medium. It’s theirs. Forever. Unless they license, sell, or give away said rights.

The products above don’t even fit a single criterion of the Fair Use clause. The images on the products were lifted directly from the comic itself, put on mass-produced items almost completely unaltered, and are being distributed for commercial purposes. The audacity is pretty astounding.

(Incidentally, this is also largely what is wrong with scraping/content aggregation apps and sites, even the free ones. Unless those responsible for offering these services received explicit permission from the artists whose work they feature ahead of time, they are violating the artists’ exclusive right to the distribution of their content.)

Fair Use (Within the Comic)

I can’t count how many times Andrew has been “called out” for copyright infringement of his own, both with regards to images used within the comic, as well as songs released on official albums. I can’t blame those who are unacquainted with copyright law for being genuinely confused, and genuinely wanting to know why “x” is wrong but “y” is okay.

Online, the comic falls into the same nebulous grey area all photomanipulations, collages, and otherwise altered imagery and content fall under. Since the images themselves didn’t appear on any commercial products, it would have been difficult to argue the legitimacy of their use. I mean, you could do it, but that would be taking most blogs, galleries, forums, news/media sources, and search engines to task as well.

Which people still do, I guess, but that treads dangerously close to the same line of thinking that brought about policy proposals such as SOPA and PIPA. You have to temper this kind of legal interpretation with the concepts promoted by the Fair Use clause, which takes into consideration the nature of the derivative work, its purpose, and its impact on the source.

That being said, Fair Use will always, always be a confusing grey area. It is vague in its guidelines because it is a subjective concept that, from a legal standpoint, can only be decided on a case-by-case basis. In court. That being said, the closest you can get to such a determination without actually having to be taken to court is through legal advisement. From a lawyer.

Which they have.

As a reminder, licenses were purchased by Andrew for the tracks that covered existing songs. They are strictly on the up-and-up. They have also consulted with their legal adviser on the subject of printing and selling the comic, which contains digitally altered photographs, celebrity likenesses, and brand names. As such, it can be safely assumed the books are on the up-and-up as well.

I could go into the minutia of how each celebrity/brand representation constitutes parody, and how the photographs pulled from the internet are edited to the extent that the substantiality of the original content is likely negligible, not even taking into consideration the fact that they may be available for such use through creative commons or public domain, and how photography is probably the most legally confusing form of art because copyrighted and privately owned content is photographed all the time SO WHO REALLY OWNS THE RIGHTS TO IMAGES CAPTURED BY A CAMERA?? but A) it’s not my comic, so I don’t know the particulars of every image used and B) I’m not a lawyer, nor have I spoken to theirs, so I could speculate all I want but it would all be legally and objectively irrelevant!

Nonprofit vs Non-Commercial vs Free

There has also been, and continues to be, confusion on the matter of what counts as “selling” products based on copyrighted property. Not making a profit on an item you have sold, i.e., selling something at the cost of materials, does not have anything to do with being nonprofit, which refers to charitable and educational services, nor is it non-commercial, which refers to the use of something in a way that explicitly does not involve commerce (often in the context of a nonprofit).

The minute money or its equivalent is exchanged, the use becomes commercial. Notice my inclusion of “or its equivalent”; the exchange of a service for a service (say, an art trade) or any other sort of bartering (services for items, items for other items) falls under the definition of commerce.

Free is the only free, but even that comes with legal restrictions. As another tumblr user aptly put it:

…if you don’t have a license that explicitly permits noncommercial usage, it is not even legal to give something away for free if it’s covered by someone else’s copyright. Music piracy is the obvious example. You’re not gonna make money uploading your Beatles albums to The Pirate Bay, but it’s still illegal without explicit permission from the Beatles.

To be fair, in this context, most creators are about as equally concerned with the private bartering of fan-made items and private art commissions as they are with fanart itself, but it all comes down to the point I made at the beginning of my post, which is the exclusive right of the creator to control the distribution of their intellectual property.

If you’re not sure they’re okay with it, ask before you do it. If they say no, don’t do it.

It’s not personal, it’s their right.

I’m pretty passionate about copyright infringement so please read this if you are wondering why you should care too! Especially if you are a creator.

I forgot to post this drawing I did today of the SCIENCE BROS...

Mon, 28 May 2012 00:18:00 -0700

I forgot to post this drawing I did today of the SCIENCE BROS because they are my favorite. I may redraw this into a legit picture because Sfé Monster and I have plans for drawing more Bruce and Tony (Brony? Truce?). They are my favorite shipship (friendship shipping).

Hot tip: put a drawing of A Homestuck Riding a Pony on your...

Sun, 27 May 2012 12:52:20 -0700

Hot tip: put a drawing of A Homestuck Riding a Pony on your table and everyone will stop and look at your table. (Taken with instagram)

I’m at Wonder Northwest today! My boothmate isn’t...

Sun, 27 May 2012 10:22:07 -0700

I’m at Wonder Northwest today! My boothmate isn’t great company though. All he does is giggle. (Taken with instagram)

I gotta get stuff done before Wonder Northwest this weekend (if...

Fri, 25 May 2012 01:16:00 -0700

I gotta get stuff done before Wonder Northwest this weekend (if you live in Portland YOU SHOULD GO. If you are not going WHY AREN’T YOU GOING?)

So here’s a list of stuff I gotta do today.

~~• Pack store order~~
~~• Mail store orders~~
~~• See if my Anubis costume still fits~~
~~• Gee I hope it does~~
~~• Pack up stuff I need to take to Wonder Northwest~~
~~• Book a cab to get to Wonder Northwest because I sure as heck ain’t ridin’ the bus with my handcart full of crizzap.~~
• Go to the pre-show party at the Space Room!
• Maybe if there’s time I can get an Art finished.

chuckgroenink: Alright, folks. I would call this thing a...

Thu, 24 May 2012 11:31:54 -0700

chuckgroenink:

Alright, folks. I would call this thing a resounding success so far! I have a very full inbox right now, so I’m going to say I’m filled up.
I’m sorry if you were planning to email me to order a drawing. I’m sure though that I’ll repeat this again sometime soon.
A huge thank you to everyone who ordered a drawing!

Hey, if you’ve ever wanted to support a struggling artist, why not now.
To help pay with the rent I’m available for commissions until june 1st.
So if you’d like a pencil drawing, or (washed) ink drawing right now is the time to order one!
Here’s how I want to set this up.

For $20 (plus shipping) you can get a 5x7 black and white drawing of any subject of your choice.

For $40 (plus shipping) you’ll get an 8x10 drawing of anything you want, and if you like I can throw in a colour as well!

I can’t tell you how many orders I will be able to take, or how long it will take to get them all made. As I’ve never done this before, but I’m hoping I can make some nice things for you.
So, please spread the word and if you’re interested drop me a line and we’ll get talking.

Chuck is a good guy and a great illustrator and these commissions are SUPER CHEAP. Get in on this!!

Look what Shabet drew! One time we were pub-stomping on a server...

Wed, 23 May 2012 20:02:00 -0700

Look what Shabet drew! One time we were pub-stomping on a server and literally everybody on the enemy team was a Spy. This sure beats the pants off of the Ghost Gang picture I drew yesterday! GHOST GANG!! (also go wish Shabet a happy birthday!!)

Also here’s a Liz from Dead Winter because Shabet deserves...

Wed, 23 May 2012 00:34:24 -0700

Also here’s a Liz from Dead Winter because Shabet deserves birthday art that’s not TF2 fanart! HAPPY BIRTHDAY.

Oh no it’s Shabet’s birthday and I used it as a...

Wed, 23 May 2012 00:06:00 -0700

Oh no it’s Shabet’s birthday and I used it as a horrible excuse to doodle TF2 Ghost Gang fanart! Thanks for teaching me how to use the Kritzkrieg so we can more effectively pubstomp. Also you are a rad friend!

Sorry for this inconvenience but I've been trying to find this one sketch piece of skindeep you posted at some point. I believe it was around the time you were doing the banner of Jim over the Avalon and it talks about some old church or monastery built in/around the avalon by missionaries. I've been diving through the tumble archives but I must have missed it or have the wrong archive, if you remember what I'm talking about can you point me? Thanks for any help.

Tue, 22 May 2012 21:41:31 -0700

I do remember what you’re talking about, and dang if I can find that post! It was about the history of the Avalon’s St. Francis Cathedral, which I can share again if you’d like. Anything particular you’d like to know?

I finally have time to work on my ValveZine comic hee hee...

Mon, 21 May 2012 22:33:00 -0700

I finally have time to work on my ValveZine comic hee hee hee

(the box with an x over it is a Scottish flag. It’s hard to tell that without color)

Comic is updated a day early because I wanted to! Also I am...

Mon, 21 May 2012 17:02:00 -0700

Comic is updated a day early because I wanted to!

Also I am going to be at Wonder Northwest this weekend! Come stop on by, it’s a great little convention!

sfemonster: Hey everyone, I am offering $10 sketch...

Fri, 18 May 2012 13:31:49 -0700

sfemonster:

Hey everyone, I am offering $10 sketch commissions!
I would like to get back in the swing of doing commissions by offering quick flat-coloured sketch commissions! I will draw anything you want (provided it is yours- no fanart). References required. Payment in advance via Paypal.

I am also offering TIP BONUSES. Basically, the more you tip the more you get- a smaller tip will get you shading and highlights, and a larger tip will get you full body drawings, additional characters, extra artwork, etc.- I am not going to say exactly what amount gets what, but obviously the more you tip the more you’ll get in return. You do not have to tip, by any means, this is just a bonus.

More examples of my work can be found at my tumblr, my drawing tag, or at my Draw Every* Character project.

I am only going to take four commissions at the moment, and they are first-come first-serve:
1. available
2. available
3. available
4. available

If you are interested please contact me via Tumblr messages, or e-mail me at sfemonster gmail com. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask, or to consult my commission fine print page.

Sfé is offering SUPER CHEAP COMMISSIONS. GET ON THIS! :D

The Coatl is next up in the InCryptid Field Guide!

Fri, 18 May 2012 12:37:45 -0700

The Coatl is next up in the InCryptid Field Guide!

Help a lady out!

Fri, 18 May 2012 00:46:06 -0700

workmadeforhire:

Are you a freelancer, artist or creative professional living in good ol’ Portland, Oregon??

Please take my five question survey and SAVE THE WORLD**.

Thank you!!

**You will not actually save the world, you will only help me out. But I’ll really appreciate it.

Katie is a good human. If you’re a freelancer in Portland, help her out!

sfelookatthis.gif

Thu, 17 May 2012 19:38:55 -0700

sfelookatthis.gif

If I batted my eyelashes and asked nicely, would you do art critiques?

Thu, 17 May 2012 18:31:50 -0700

Maybe? I’m not really the best at critiques unless there’s something really obvious that needs fixing, and even then I like to know who I’m talking to so I know how to word my critique! Some people take it differently than others and I don’t like to get into fights on the internet.

froggy-horntail: lavisant: zhatdoktor: youmeandtheneko: koryb...

Thu, 17 May 2012 13:36:30 -0700

froggy-horntail:

lavisant:

zhatdoktor:

youmeandtheneko:

korybing:

Team Fortress 2 Medic + Tom Lehrer Lyrics = Giant Huge Dork (me)

Anyone know which Tom Lehrer song this is? Because I would LOVE to make it my new theme song.

(Or, if, god forbid, I finish college and do become a doctor, so that I have something to sing while I’m making my rounds.)

It’s “Poisoning Pigeons in the Park.” http://youtu.be/yhuMLpdnOjY ENJOY

Pliny’s Gorgon is the next entry in the InCryptid Field...

Thu, 17 May 2012 13:20:00 -0700

Pliny’s Gorgon is the next entry in the InCryptid Field Guide!

If working with Seanan McGuire has shown me anything, it’s that I get a real kick out of drawing and coloring snakes.