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Kunsthistorische Publikationen und Bildrechte zwischen dem BGH-Urteil zu Museumsfotos (2018) und der Umsetzung der Richtlinie (EU) 2019/790
Alte Probleme, neue Entwicklungen
Since 1907, photographs have been legally protected in Germany as „Lichtbilder“, including photographic reproductions of works of art. Under the Copyright Act (UrhG), which has been in force since 1966, this has not changed. In its ruling of December 2018 (Museumsfotos), the Federal Court of Justice (BGH) confirmed this legal situation. Photographic reproductions of art in the public domain are subject to a separate copyright protection. To compensate for this, the BGH has extended the scope of application of the right of citation (which is actually only applicable to reproductions of works that are still protected) and transferred it to reproductions of works in the public domain. The BGH has also confirmed that museums may order and enforce photography prohibitions in their collections. Directive (EU) 2019/790, which was adopted in 2019 and must be implemented by summer 2021, will restrict the protection of photographs and lead to the free use of reproductions of works in the public domain – the extent of an exception for images of three-dimensional works and buildings, remains a debatable issue, as these photographs themselves constitute protected works.
Keywords:
Humanities, image copyrights, museum collections, museum photos, open access, open access books, open access monographs, open data, open science, prohibition of photography, protection of photographs, reproduction photography, social media
Grischka Petr is an art historian and lawyer. Research focus: 19th century art, history of art in Great Britain, printmaking, copyright history, historical art market research, art law, iconology of the Elasmobranchii.
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2548-449X
