Moral Dilemma" with Concept Art?
by Ruleui · in General Discussion · 08/19/2006 (9:03 am) · 7 replies
Well first off, I am complete garbage when it comes to drawing (I can't even make concept art for concept art). I am currently making a design document for my "gem". An open-ended SP RPG, a game that I will never finish, but it is my reason for harvesting my interest in game programming. I chose an open-ended RPG because I am fascinated by the whole concept of creating your own world with its own history, creatures, weapons, etc. I looked into some Greek Mythology for the design of my game and "borrowed" a few ideas such as the Minotaur, Satyr, Centaur, and the Gryphen. Being so abundant in folklore, these creatures are spilling out of Google Images.
I am not trying to claim these pictures as my own, sell them, or anything of the sort. I simply want to use them for personal concept art (I am not a 3D artist either so I would be passing them onto someone else). I would be including them in my design document but nothing else. The art I am planning on using is not concept art for a game, more of "hobby drawings", such as this one I am looking at: http://www.noneedforbushido.com/images/ssart/minotaur.jpg .
Ones like this would be easy for my to ask permission for, but some are scattered throughout Mythology sites, making it impossible for me to find the author. Does anyone have constructive thoughts on this issue?
I am not trying to claim these pictures as my own, sell them, or anything of the sort. I simply want to use them for personal concept art (I am not a 3D artist either so I would be passing them onto someone else). I would be including them in my design document but nothing else. The art I am planning on using is not concept art for a game, more of "hobby drawings", such as this one I am looking at: http://www.noneedforbushido.com/images/ssart/minotaur.jpg .
Ones like this would be easy for my to ask permission for, but some are scattered throughout Mythology sites, making it impossible for me to find the author. Does anyone have constructive thoughts on this issue?
About the author
#2
By the way, IANABSL, so you might want to do some personal research on copyright law, fair use, and similar topics.
Acronyms used in this post:
IANABSL = I Am Not A Blood-Sucking L@^&#r
08/19/2006 (9:50 am)
Disclaimer:By the way, IANABSL, so you might want to do some personal research on copyright law, fair use, and similar topics.
Acronyms used in this post:
IANABSL = I Am Not A Blood-Sucking L@^&#r
#3
08/19/2006 (11:52 am)
If you're just using it as pre-concept art, why don't you just include a list of urls so that the artists can look at it? Then you're not copying it at all. You're not going to use it in the game, so why download it at all? 
#4
08/19/2006 (3:03 pm)
That seems to be fairly correct usage of scavenged art. I remember Bioware concept artist posting some concept work on environments in private forum. It was mix full of ref photos and pieces painted by himself, basically a collage just to give the idea to 3D artist. Which is the whole idea :)
#5
You can safely direct your artists to that site to see an example of what you're looking for, but I wouldn't include it in an "official" document for your project.
As an alternative, have you considered asking one of the hobbyists if they'd allow you to use the artwork as inspiration for your project, or even create new artwork?
Another possibility: look to classical art if your myth-critters are fairly true to the originals.
And another: there are several extremely cheap clipart collections on the market that include mythological beasts. They might be sufficient for concept art.
Good luck!
08/19/2006 (6:22 pm)
If you're in the U.S., reprinting that material or creating derivative works could be a recipe for trouble. Yes, you're probably within "fair use" provisions, but if a copyright holder disagrees, do you really want to test that assumption in court? Whenever copyright law is in question, you're better off erring far, far on the side of caution.You can safely direct your artists to that site to see an example of what you're looking for, but I wouldn't include it in an "official" document for your project.
As an alternative, have you considered asking one of the hobbyists if they'd allow you to use the artwork as inspiration for your project, or even create new artwork?
Another possibility: look to classical art if your myth-critters are fairly true to the originals.
And another: there are several extremely cheap clipart collections on the market that include mythological beasts. They might be sufficient for concept art.
Good luck!
#6
08/19/2006 (11:51 pm)
There's concept art and then there's marketing promo materials "concept art" As long as ref photos are for documents for internal use only, there can not be a trouble. There is a reason artists have homes full of photo albums, illustrated encyclopedias and whatnot- those are my inspiration and reference sources. If the same materials are provided by client, nothing has changed (except I have a much better idea of what he wants). If I tried to track down every dude who photographed a nice English church ruin or an interesting garment or texture or whatever, I'd better stop doing art right now and spend the rest of my life asking them all permissions. For photos scissorred out of magazines/newspapers I dont think it'd be even possible to remember approximate sources, nevermind the authors. That's just how its done. When I see a weird nocturnal animal on Discovery channel and do a quick sketch of fantastic animal who has similar eyes and fur, I dont give a crap about cameraman who shot the animal, nor should I.
#7
RE: Discovery channel animals
Yeah, my DVR is full of stuff like that -- landscapes, islands, architecture, dinosaurs, plants, etc.
08/20/2006 (5:35 am)
@NaurisRE: Discovery channel animals
Yeah, my DVR is full of stuff like that -- landscapes, islands, architecture, dinosaurs, plants, etc.
Torque Owner Aaron E
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For the most part, it sounds like you've been creating a visual collage of ideas and inspiration for your game. A lot of game development professionals build collections of scavenged photos and art before creating their own stuff. As I understand it, the "Fair use" copyright concept provides a decent amount of protection for individuals doing research. However, if you start distributing these images to others, on your website for example, you may run into some sticky legal issues.
For your own peace of mind, think of the pre-concept art section of your design document as if it were a research paper for school (citing all images and sources as fully as possible). When you pass that information along to your concept artist/3D modeller/whoever, include information about where they can find the original images. Or maybe just give them the links without the pictures. Fair use provisions exist to encourage research, expand knowledge and enrich society. As such, your inspiration collage should be fine.