Google’s Copyright Policy Inspires Conceptual Art Project

British artist Phil Thompson‘s art project, Copyrights, critiques the Google Art Project and its grand attempt at bringing art to the masses. In his project, Thompson makes screen grabs of the blurred images in his browser window, sends them to the Dafen Oil Painting Village in China and then exhibits those works in a gallery.

Keep in mind that due to copyright concerns Google blurs out certain art works in the Art Project. What we like about this project is that instead of lamenting how copyright denies and thus oppresses our “right” to access and view free art, Thompson takes a much more poetic and critical position by — gasp! — appropriating those blurred out artworks making art out of them. Kind of reminds us of Allan McCollum’s Perpetual Photos (1982-89) of paintings seen in television shows which McCollum then photographs, enlarges, and exhibits as blurry photographs. Love it!

Via Wired.

Tags: allan mccollum, appropriation, Art Law, china, Copyright, critique, google art project, oil painting, painting, photography