“Plagiarism is the representation of another author’s language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions as one’s own original work.”

According to the Merriam-Webster online dictionary, to “plagiarize” means:

• to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one’s own
• to use (another’s production) without crediting the source
• to commit literary theft
• to present as new and original an idea or product derived from an existing source

I was thinking that the vendors of KRAFTEMPORIUM may benefit from some information on this matter, although most of you probably are familiar with it anyway. No harm in jolting the memories a bit, though. One so easily becomes complacent. Using any than your own material can lead to a sticky situation. As painters we all sometimes see an image that really speak to you and your first instinct is to take up brush and paint and represent it. The easiest way to stay out of trouble, of course, is to use only your own photographs as reference material for paintings. When publishing any art work on the internet, especially a platform such as KRAFTEMPORIUM, lots of people are going to see and potentially report misuse of material.

There are other ways around this, though. Last year (that is the infamous 2020) I was doing Inktober for the second consecutive year. This is a worldwide drive, initiated by one Jake Parker. He annually publishes a prompt list with the subject of the day. Artists then publish their daily ink drawing using that prompt on Instagram. The prompt for Day 6 was “Rodent”. I was not particularly enthusiastic about this specific subject matter. Paging through a “Weg” magazine I came across a photograph of a Spotted Eagle-owl carrying his prey, a mouse, in its beak. Knowing full well that I will not be able to use this image, I started drawing anyway, simply for the pleasure of drawing. Reviewing it the next morning, I was happy with the way it turned out. I immediately emailed the Editor of the magazine who put me in contact with Toast Coetzer who is responsible for the photography section, who then gave me the contact details of the master photographer – in this case, a 13-year old boy from the Stellenbosch district. The young man actually won a competition with this excellent photo. I contacted him and his mother and stated my case, and was immediately given permission to use the photograph. The entire process took about an hour, a little effort and a friendly approach. It was painless. It also meant that I could use this photo as reference material without any risk of committing a crime – which is exactly what the use of reference material without permission, amounts to. For the record: as it was meant for Inktober, it had to be done in ink. I did the initial drawing in fine liner, added Winsor and Newton coloured ink to it, and finished the background in a mixture of black and Payne’s Grey FW drawing ink. Thank you for the permission to use your photo, Eon – this was so good to do. (PS. I later on mailed the little drawing to him as a gift.)

In my opinion, it is also extremely important to treat either bought or given reference material with respect. Give it your best as far as technique and time are concerned.

SPOTTED EAGLE OWL WITH MOUSE DONE IN INK BY CHARLOTTE BRESSER AFTER A PHOTOGRAPH BY EON GROBLER.

PRELIMINARY SKETCH FOR A PAINTING AFTER A PHOTO BY TARIQ MAHMOUD

I had another recent and at the moment ongoing experience (the painting is not done yet). A dear friend sends me a very artful photograph of a woman and a horse with the request that I paint this for her. Of course my immediate reaction is: under no circumstances without the written permission of the photographer. She starts an intensive search and eventually locates this professional photographer in Spain. She mails him and he immediately replies, very friendly, that I may by all means use the photo, all he wants is to see the end result! That’s the Spanish for you. The painting is not done yet, but above is the preliminary sketch for it. I am really trying to do this amazing photo justice.

Most Photographers are quite pedantic about their work, and with good reason. Their equipment cost as much as a house and to get to a professional level requires endless devotion, study and practice. It is as much an art form as any I can think of. My medium is paint, a photographer’s is his camera and other equipment. It is also not okay to copy a photo from a calendar. My two cent’s worth is not to expose yourself in this way on a site such as KRAFTEMPORIUM or any social media platforms.

And, on a lighter note, for goodness’ sake, under no circumstances do what Picasso regarded as good practice: On a very philosophical level I suppose it is
actually true, but don’t go there! You won’t get away with it, you’re not Picasso!