Museum in New York grants free access to more than 375,000 artworks

Recently, the Metropolitan Museum of New York (MET) announced on its website it the application of a policy of free access to a catalog of more than 375,000 images of works of art within its collection, which will now be freely used.

The institution seeks to become the museum with the largest and most diverse open access collection in the world, offering new resources for creativity, knowledge and ideas. These works of art, from now on, will be subject to the Creative Commons Zero (CCZ) license, which means that anyone can copy, modify, distribute the work of art and make public communications, both for academic and commercial purposes, without restrictions and without authorization from the holder///owner.

According to Diario las Americas, Metropolitan Museum of Art Director Thomas P. Campbell stated in a press conference “our museum collection spans 5,000 years of world culture and our core mission is to be open and accessible for all who wish to study and enjoy the works of art in our care.”

However, it should be noted that although most of the works have been cataloged in the public domain and are part of the program, many of the modern and contemporary creations preserved by the New York museum cannot yet be freely accessed due to Intellectual Property restrictions provided by legislation and enforced by galleries, foundations, artists, donors or lenders, something that raises doubts about the effects of the new policy, which even leaves in the hands of the CCZ license relevant data of the works, such as the title, the artist, the date and the dimensions thereof.

In contrast, in Venezuela, Article 44 of the Law on Copyright establishes that the copy of works of art made for the sole purpose of a study is considered as a lawful reproduction (article 44(7)); as well as the reproduction of a work of art permanently exhibited in the streets, squares or other public places, by means of a type of art different from the one used for the creation of the original (article 44(9)).

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Photo by mbarrison / CC BY-SA 2.0

“El Met de Nueva York permitirá usar libremente 375.000 imágenes de sus obras”. Available at: http://www.diariolasamericas.com/cultura/el-met-nueva-york-permitira-usar-libremente-375000-imagenes-sus-obras-n4114342

“Introducing Open Access at The Met”. Available at: http://www.metmuseum.org/blogs/digital-underground/2017/open-access-at-the-met