16 - Graffiti and Street Art under South African Copyright Law

Summary

This chapter examines how South African copyright law deals with graffiti and other works of street art. In doing so, it considers both the current law and some of the provisions of the country’s proposed Copyright Amendment Bill. The chapter addresses, among others, questions of originality, the requirement of permanency of fixation, issues surrounding the propriety and illegality of such works as well as authorship and ownership. In addition, the chapter explores the scope of, on the one hand, the economic and moral rights of street artists and, on the other, the availability of exceptions and limitations for those who wish to make permission-free use of such works, including South Africa’s version of the freedom of panorama exception. The chapter concludes by emphasising the need for more empirical research in this field.