Asher Kelman
OPF Owner/Editor-in-Chief
This discussion comes out of Nicolas' thread here on the question of pictures outside a series of pictures.
Nicolas,
The guy you shave with likely has a conflict of interest, LOL!
So can you, in all good conscience, use an picture of yours for other commercial purposes besides fine art prints? Well the only commitment inherent in selling a limited edition of signed prints is that you will not offer that entity in that form again, beyond the copies already in the series. That's the extent of our promise!
In any case, it's not an issue of morality, which I consider has more to do with deceiving in personal intimate matters where there's an inherent rule such as, "don't sleep with your family members except your spouse", "kids in your scout pack" or "your friends wife". It also would cover taking dangerous public health short cuts in, for example, supplying tainted food to milk to stores and the like. So morality seems to be more about our personal intimacy and safety in family ties and community lifelines.
Ethics is, I'd offer, might best considered a matter of business commerce and power. So there, it's not what one is strong enough to do, rather, it's what one should do. So conflict of interest is unethical. A psychiatrist having sex with his patient is unethical. These may also be illegal but first of all they break the boundaries of trust in a commercial transaction.
Here, the issues are much, much, more trivial! I cannot see that it could ever be a moral problem. It can't even rise to an issue of ethics. you have never committed to not having posters of your work for an exhibition or to welcome the Olympics or for that matter an album cover. You can advertise your own work, make pamphlets or have business cards with the same pictures you sell as a limited edition. It's hardly that form and certainly not as unique.
So I'd go ahead with a clear conscience; you've deceived no one! Just have him insert a link to your website for those interested in your art!
Asher
An academic approach on morals v. ethics would argue that morals are those codified rules in our writings and customs and ethics are the thoughts and rationale behind the sets of moral rules we use as tools to relate, one to another. However, this does not tell you what's practical!
Nicolas,
The guy you shave with likely has a conflict of interest, LOL!
So can you, in all good conscience, use an picture of yours for other commercial purposes besides fine art prints? Well the only commitment inherent in selling a limited edition of signed prints is that you will not offer that entity in that form again, beyond the copies already in the series. That's the extent of our promise!
In any case, it's not an issue of morality, which I consider has more to do with deceiving in personal intimate matters where there's an inherent rule such as, "don't sleep with your family members except your spouse", "kids in your scout pack" or "your friends wife". It also would cover taking dangerous public health short cuts in, for example, supplying tainted food to milk to stores and the like. So morality seems to be more about our personal intimacy and safety in family ties and community lifelines.
Ethics is, I'd offer, might best considered a matter of business commerce and power. So there, it's not what one is strong enough to do, rather, it's what one should do. So conflict of interest is unethical. A psychiatrist having sex with his patient is unethical. These may also be illegal but first of all they break the boundaries of trust in a commercial transaction.
Here, the issues are much, much, more trivial! I cannot see that it could ever be a moral problem. It can't even rise to an issue of ethics. you have never committed to not having posters of your work for an exhibition or to welcome the Olympics or for that matter an album cover. You can advertise your own work, make pamphlets or have business cards with the same pictures you sell as a limited edition. It's hardly that form and certainly not as unique.
So I'd go ahead with a clear conscience; you've deceived no one! Just have him insert a link to your website for those interested in your art!
Asher
An academic approach on morals v. ethics would argue that morals are those codified rules in our writings and customs and ethics are the thoughts and rationale behind the sets of moral rules we use as tools to relate, one to another. However, this does not tell you what's practical!
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