The ethics of deconstructing and sharing secret techniques
Posted: Fri Apr 07, 2017 2:03 pm
Many artists make a significant portion of their income by teaching techniques to their students. The more interesting the technique and the more unique it is to just one artist, the more the classes can cost. That's simple economics. I appreciate that.
What are the ethical implications if I were to deconstruct an artist's unique technique and give it away for free?
Say I've never taken the artist's class. I've never purchased any instructional media. The artist is the only one who has developed this technique and only teaches it one-on-one or sells instructional media. (Or has never told anyone how it is done.) Perhaps there are confidentiality-like agreements in place. Then I come along studying the artist's finished product yet never taking a class or purchasing any instructional material, I develop the technique on my own. Being a hobbyist and not "in the trade", if someone asks how I did it, I put a PDF on the web or create a YouTube video (something I am very likely to do).
Just how wrong am I?
If I never say "Here's how to do John Doe's 'Such-and-Such Technique', but rather "Here's how I did my 'Blah-blah-blah Technique'", how wrong is that?
I ask these things because I see how much artists charge for their classes and know I'll never pay for the class, but I am doing my best to understand the underlying techniques. I doubt I'll create anything as spectacular as what I've seen, but if someone likes what I do and wants to know how I did it, I likely won't be quiet about it.
What are the ethical implications if I were to deconstruct an artist's unique technique and give it away for free?
Say I've never taken the artist's class. I've never purchased any instructional media. The artist is the only one who has developed this technique and only teaches it one-on-one or sells instructional media. (Or has never told anyone how it is done.) Perhaps there are confidentiality-like agreements in place. Then I come along studying the artist's finished product yet never taking a class or purchasing any instructional material, I develop the technique on my own. Being a hobbyist and not "in the trade", if someone asks how I did it, I put a PDF on the web or create a YouTube video (something I am very likely to do).
Just how wrong am I?
If I never say "Here's how to do John Doe's 'Such-and-Such Technique', but rather "Here's how I did my 'Blah-blah-blah Technique'", how wrong is that?
I ask these things because I see how much artists charge for their classes and know I'll never pay for the class, but I am doing my best to understand the underlying techniques. I doubt I'll create anything as spectacular as what I've seen, but if someone likes what I do and wants to know how I did it, I likely won't be quiet about it.