Before Two Artists Sign, Name the Rights
Priya N. Chen on 12th Nov 2026
Before Two Artists Sign, Name the Rights
I painted half the work, but the agreement let my collaborator license all of it. That is the sentence I would want to catch before signing. In the United States, copyright initially belongs to the author or authors. Authors of a joint work are co-owners. But working in the same studio does not, by itself, answer what the work is or who authored it. Start there. Name the finished work. Name each contribution. List any sketches, photographs, or other material one artist made before the project began.
Next, decide what the agreement is covering. Is this one joint work? Are there separate works gathered into a larger one? Both? Under the U.S. Copyright Act, copyright in a contribution to a collective work is distinct from copyright in the collection as a whole. Putting two pieces together does not silently hand over every right in each piece. A contract should say what happens to the existing material and what each artist may do with their own contribution after the collaboration ends.
Then write the license clause in ordinary words. Who may approve a gallery edition, a book reproduction, or merchandise? Must both artists agree? May either artist license a particular use alone? U.S. law allows particular exclusive rights to be transferred and owned separately. The word collaboration does not tell a buyer which rights are on offer. Nor does a payment answer every ownership question. If someone proposes a work-made-for-hire clause, stop and identify it: that arrangement can change who the law treats as the author. Do not bury it among delivery dates and fees.
Keep the border visible. This is a U.S. ownership checklist, not a worldwide copyright rule. If the work will be used in another country, name that country and the proposed use. The Berne Convention supplies principles and minimum protections across its member countries. It does not write the artists’ license clause or replace the national law relevant to a particular use. Before counsel drafts terms, the artists should also ask whom counsel represents: one artist, both artists, or the party commissioning the work. The artist remains the client, not a signature to collect. One action today: make a one-page list of the work, each contributor, existing material, intended uses, who may license each use, and who makes the final decision. Take that page to the contract meeting.
This column teaches the law. It is not legal advice for your dispute. A lawyer admitted where you live, or where the work is used, is who files, registers, and argues.
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