At 12:49 04/02/98 -0500, you wrote:
>I know this debate can go on and on but does the artist truly own copyright?
>Don't you have to formally apply for copyrights and isn't there a difference
>between copyright and paternity?  Putting the (c) next to your name does not
>necessarily give you legal claim to the image.
>

Under the Berne Convention, to which the US is a signator, the
author/artist/creator is inherently the sole owner of the copyright in
his/her creation from the moment of its creation,  without the neccessity
of copyright declaration --  (c) + year + name -- or registration.  The
optional step of registration is possible and advisable in the US for
recovery of damages in an infringement suit.

Moral rights (droit morale or paternity rights) are quite similar in that
they are inherent and immediate and require no declartion or registration.
The difference is that moral rights are a right of personality, and pertain
to the artist as a person.  Copyrights are property rights.  An artist can
divide, sell, transfer, bequeath, license, give away or waive his/her
copyright, but cannot do the same with moral rights.





amalyah keshet
head of visual resources, the israel museum, jerusalem
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fax: +972-2-670-8064
visit our web page: www.imj.org.il