Summer Project

For my summer project I've been looking at image sharing (or theft) on the internet, and the line between inspiration and imitation. I'm also thinking a lot about putting images in the public domain and what it means. Obviously there's the plus sides of allowing anyone to see your work, and hopefully get work or build a reputation out of it. I'm focusing on the idea that once an image is in the public domain, the original owner loses their rights over it in a way and have no control over who sees it or uses it. In a way it cheapens the original, in the way that it is can now be copied an unlimited number of times onto desktops all over the world, and in the way that those copies will never compare to the original. What I've done is made something original, of which there is only one copy, and I'm putting it into the public domain (here) and seeing what happens to it. I used a polaroid because there can only ever be one copy, other film has a negative which can be printed and will look the same as the original. Under the photo I've letterpressed a disclaimer which is common on most sites, but mostly ignored. I'm making a book of all the forms that this image might now take, so if anyone can spare a minute of their time I'd like you to copy it to your desktop, take a screen grab of it open on your computer, print the image and either send it to me, or just send me the screen grab. Change the format of the image if you like, anything really, just send me the result. Cheers then, ta.