Few topics have greater potential for disaster than copyright. Designers and clients knowingly and unknowingly infringe someone's rights every day. Copyright is a minefield but few of us know where the mines are buried. How do we avoid being blown up?
The United States Copyright office defines copyright as a 'form of protection provided by the laws of the United States to the authors of "original works of authorship", including literary, dramatic, musical, artistic, and certain other intellectual works'. Significantly, this definition doesn't mention design. Copyright in relation to design is describe by the AIGA in its online Guide to Copyright as defining 'the ownership of work created by a designer'.
The AIGA guide notes that 'most graphic design should be copyrightable'. It states that, 'Basic geometric shapes, such as squares and circles, are not copyrightable, but artistic combinations of these shapes can be copyrighted. Typeface designs are also excluded from being copyrightable.'
Graphic Design: A Users Manual by Adrian Shaughnessy
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