Fair Use

One of the themes I often return to when I decide on projects is to point out the ridiculousness of modern copyright laws.  Maybe I don't think that the general idea of copyright is that ridiculous, but modern applications of it certainly are. Today I hit upon a fun project which would allow me to duplicate a popular work under copyright, while staying within a very clear definition of fair use. Fair use is defined here, with the following criteria:

“quotation of excerpts in a review or criticism for purposes of illustration or comment; quotation of short passages in a scholarly or technical work, for illustration or clarification of the author’s observations; use in a parody of some of the content of the work parodied; summary of an address or article, with brief quotations, in a news report; reproduction by a library of a portion of a work to replace part of a damaged copy; reproduction by a teacher or student of a small part of a work to illustrate a lesson; reproduction of a work in legislative or judicial proceedings or reports; incidental and fortuitous reproduction, in a newsreel or broadcast, of a work located in the scene of an event being reported.”

Several interesting points to make here. One, this quotation could be copyrighted, except that it's origin appears to be the US government, and a government cannot produce works protected under intellectual property law. Here's the really interesting part though:

"The distinction between fair use and infringement may be unclear and not easily defined. There is no specific number of words, lines, or notes that may safely be taken without permission."

What if I were to produce a tangential work using a different medium and title my series with the sequential lyrics of a popular song. I think we can all agree that the use of a single song lyric would be fair use, but what if I used them all, each for a different piece? It's easy to argue this is also fair use, as long as each piece stands on it's own. 

My project started this weekend, and with any luck I'll develop this roll of film and post my first print tonight. The series as a whole is called "Wish you were here." 

It might take me a while to get through this. As in weeks. I'll write a bookend post when I'm done with the series, and until then each print will be without the usual jibber jabber.