Drawings based on other art

[acappellasaurus]

I guess I have always had a knack for putting pencil to paper and producing something that looks like...well...something, I guess. I do enjoy it, but I have a lower end self esteem thing going on when I show it to others, even when they tell me my stuff is good. So lately, I've been dabbling a little more. I took a low key IT assistant job and have a lot of time to doodle while updates run and installs process. I've been doing some sketches of a friend's animal photos (with his knowledge and blessing), but have also been pretty proficient at sketching other artwork I have seen as well. Sometimes, there's no question as to the source material. I guess my question here is, do I have an obligation to credit the artist I am emulating when it's obvious? I'm talking someone on a local level, not Picasso or somesuch. I'm also an avid beer homebrewer, and have always been told when using a recipe I find on the internet for competition purposes that it's a homebrewing competition, not a recipe writing competition, and that there's never an expectation of crediting the recipe and such. Is there a similar code of ethic in the world of sketch?

 

[thestrangequark]

I think it is always best to give credit where credit is due. I've done sketches of statues a few times over the years, and I generally credit the original artist (if known) if I publish the picture in any way, including posting it online. "Sketch of Degas' Little Dancer" or "Sketch of Statue in Central Park", etc.

 

[stoneroses]

Be careful but technically unless you are trying to pass your work as Simons else's you are not doing anything wrong. Copying the the style of another artist/ illustrator, though possibly unethical, is not a crime.
However if you just copied someone else's you really must give credit. If you published copied in work in say a newspaper you run the risk of the artist asking the paper for money which depending on the size of the publication may be passed on to you.
If you feel you are any good keep at it! Try posting some on say Flickr or even set up a web site of your own. Good luck!

 

[Robert Maxwell]

A popular technique in comics (web and print) is tracing over photographs instead of drawing freehand. Credit is rarely, if ever, given. Source images often come from porn magazines and web sites.

People who are caught doing this are sometimes ridiculed, but they often aren't caught. Some "tracers" actually trace the work of other comic artists. Sleazy.

I wish I was making this up!

Emulating style is something else entirely and I don't think there is anything unethical about it, as long as you aren't outright tracing or duplicating their work.