Who Owns Your Tattoo? : Inked Magazine.

I don’t do illegal downloads; movies or music.  I don’t plagiarize and I only use my photos or public domain photos on my blog.

But, are my tattoos someone else’s property?  I didn’t draw them.  I have portions of two Van Gogh paintings replicated on my body.  I have a flower that I found on the internet replicated and I have letters that represent a saying that I didn’t write.

Did I infringe on someone else’s copyrights for my own benefit?

Legally I am safe because I don’t make any money off of my body art.  That sounds bad.  What I mean is that no one has offered me money to show them my tattoos.  Sounds even worse, but if someone wanted to pay me, I would share the proceeds.

But, it still begs the question, who do my tattoos belong to?

Meet China Jordan – the artist gave it that name.  I just call him CJ.  A free hand drawing on my ankle by Gabe Shum then tattooed by Gabe Shum, referencing a stuffed animal that  I purchased at a souvenir shop, commemorating the year of the bull in China in 2010.