thank you for your enquiry about copyright. Following changes to the Copyright Act in 2005, the duration of copyright on artistic works, and this includes designs, extends 70 years after the life of the creator. So the design you have mentioned is most certainly still in copyright. This means that it cannot be reproduced and made publicly available on your website without first obtaining the permission of the copyright holder. Obviously, it can sometimes be difficult to establish and locate copyright holders, however, if you wish to publish or reproduce artistic works, then you must take reasonable steps to obtain this permisson.

The Copyright Act does not allow you to use protected material without permission if and when you are unable to find the copyright owner. However, some users take the decision to use copyright material, and weigh the risk of a copyright owner bringing an infringement action against them. Even issuing a statement to the effect that reasonable steps were taken to find a copyright owner will not give legal protection against an infringement action.

The Copyright Council of Australia has a very comprehensive website, where there are many information sheets available on various aspects of copyright. Included there are fact sheets which explain the copyright regulations for Art & Design, with information for both professional craftworkers and those that pursue it as a hobby. The Copyright Council can be found at this address http://www.copyright.org.au/information

You can also contact the Copyright Council for further advice if you wish.

Another useful website is Craft Australia, should you wish to seek advice there.
http://www.craftaus.com.au/

I hope this information is of some assistance to you, unfortunately copyright can be a bit of a minefield in its complexity, but essentially it is there to protect the creator of the work.

regards

Chris Read
Research Services
State Library of South Australia
Telephone: 61 (08) 8207 7250
Fax: 61 (08) 8207 7247
Email: info@slsa.sa.gov.au