What are works of applied art? What are the laws related to the protection of works of applied art?

What is a work of applied art?

Applied art works refer to works of art with practical value, whether they are handicrafts or industrial products. Copyright law can define the scope of such works. Some countries consider applied art works to be general works of art (such as Hungarian copyright law), but the World Intellectual Property Organization believes that there is a clear difference between the two: works of art are only a kind of artwork; in addition to being artworks, applied art works must also be works created for practical use.

What are the relevant laws for the protection of applied art works?

1. Berne Convention

Regarding the meaning of "applied art works", the Guide to the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works (1971 Paris Act) published by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) points out that "the Convention uses this general expression to cover the works of art of the makers of knickknacks, jewelry, gold and silverware, furniture, wallpaper, ornaments, clothing, etc." In the Legal Glossary of Copyright and Neighboring Rights compiled by the World Intellectual Property Organization, applied art works are defined as: works of art that have practical use, regardless of whether such works are handicrafts or industrial products.

2. Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (Trips Agreement)

Article 2, paragraph 2 of the Trips Agreement (Convention on Intellectual Property) provides that "Nothing in Parts I to IV of this Agreement shall prejudice existing obligations between Members under the Paris Convention, the Berne Convention, the Rome Convention and the Treaty on Intellectual Property in Respect of Integrated Circuits." Accordingly, in terms of the protection of works of applied art, the Trips Agreement adheres to the relevant provisions and spirit of the Berne Convention, and works of applied art are the objects of its protection.

3. French Legislation

Article 112-2 of the French Copyright Law of 1992 stipulates the objects of copyright protection, which explicitly stipulates the protection of applied art works. At the same time, "the creation of the clothing and apparel industry, which refers to the form of products that are frequently updated due to fashion requirements, mainly the manufacture of clothing, furs, underwear, embroidery, fashion, shoes, gloves, leather products, the manufacture of novel or high-end fabrics, decorations and footwear products, and decorative textiles" are protected by copyright law.

4. Legislation in the United Kingdom

In 1968, the UK enacted the "Design Copyright Act". It is also the result of the UK courts' attempt to find the boundary between industrial property rights protected by designs and copyrights for many years. According to this law, the protection of designs in the UK can be summarized as follows:

(1) In general, designs are automatically copyrighted as works of art.

(2) For any design that enjoys copyright, once the copyright owner agrees to apply it to industry, the original copyright will be lost and the design will enjoy "special industrial copyright" instead.

(3) According to the UK "Registered Designs Act", a design that obtains a "quasi-patent" can enjoy dual protection under the Act (which belongs to industrial property law) and copyright law. However, the copyright protection enjoyed by the latter is only for 15 years.

The above-mentioned standard of “application to industry” is that more than 50 products have been mass-produced using the relevant design and have been put on the market.

This is the end of the knowledge about practical art works in this issue. If you want to get more information about practical art works, please pay attention and we will continue to answer you~