ADCOM ART THEFT

Adcom advertisement, uploaded 6 June 2012 vs Clinkz the Bone...

Sun, 10 Jun 2012 23:55:54 +0800

Adcom advertisement, uploaded 6 June 2012 vs Clinkz the Bone Fletcher official art, uploaded Jan 27/8 2012. [1] [2] This artwork has appeared on Adcom Art Theft before.

(If anyone can name an exact artist, please drop us a line! Thanks for your submission, L.)

(What IS Adcom? Click through, read and share!)

Student artwork vs morning by Nikolay Tudi, uploaded 9 July...

Thu, 07 Jun 2012 11:51:18 +0800

Student artwork vs morning by Nikolay Tudi, uploaded 9 July 2010.

(Thanks for your submission, Mike!)

(What IS Adcom? Click through, read and share!)

Student artwork posted 2 Nov 2011 vs Alien concept by John...

Wed, 06 Jun 2012 11:53:50 +0800

Student artwork posted 2 Nov 2011 vs Alien concept by John Kearney, uploaded 22 May 2006.

(Thanks for your submission, Mike!)

(What IS Adcom? Click through, read and share!)

Student artwork posted 2 Nov 2011 vs Queen Triffidia (beast...

Tue, 05 Jun 2012 11:54:00 +0800

Student artwork posted 2 Nov 2011 vs Queen Triffidia (beast version) by John Kearney, uploaded 4 August 2006. The illustration was originally commissioned for imagineFX issue 8.

(Thanks for your submission, Mike!)

(What IS Adcom? Click through, read and share!)

ADCOM ART THEFT: Adcom Art Theft/Tracing/Copying

Thu, 31 May 2012 11:46:49 +0800

ADCOM ART THEFT: Adcom Art Theft/Tracing/Copying:

godlikequesadillass:

adcomarttheft:

Who or what is Adcom?

Adcom is a creative training institute that uses artwork tracing as a method of learning. This is not something new or unheard of.

But Adcom has gone beyond the pale by using traced works in their advertising.

What exactly has happened?

Observe a sample of…

Anyone who reads this go on adcoms facebook and check the art. If you recognize any art that may be stolen contact the original artist

We would also request that you contact the Adcomarttheft Tumblr with sources and links, so that the action can be archived right here. Our Ask and Submit pages are standing by.

Student artwork from April 2012 uploaded 14 May 2012...

Wed, 30 May 2012 11:57:10 +0800

Student artwork from April 2012 uploaded 14 May 2012 vs Amphi-Carn-O-vore-explorations by Mike Corriero on deviantArt, created 5 Mar 2011 and uploaded 12? Mar 2011.

(Thank you for contacting us, Mr. Corriero - we appreciate it!)

(What IS Adcom? Click through, read and share!)

Student artwork from April 2012 uploaded 14 May 2012 vs Gabriel...

Tue, 29 May 2012 12:00:49 +0800

Pose

Face

Student artwork from April 2012 uploaded 14 May 2012 vs Gabriel and Noa by Dan LuVisi, uploaded 4? Jul 2010 and 9? May 2012

(What IS Adcom? Click through, read and share!)

Student artwork from April 2012 uploaded 9 May 2012 vs...

Mon, 28 May 2012 11:58:52 +0800

Student artwork from April 2012 uploaded 9 May 2012 vs Assassin’s Creed ArtBook piece by Will Murai, done 2010

(What IS Adcom? Click through, read and share!)

Student artwork from April 2012 uploaded 30 Apr 2012 vs Clinkz...

Sun, 27 May 2012 11:58:29 +0800

Student artwork from April 2012 uploaded 30 Apr 2012 vs Clinkz the Bone Fletcher official art, uploaded Jan 27/8 2012. [1] [2]

(If anyone can name an exact artist, please drop us a line!)

(What IS Adcom? Click through, read and share!)

Student artwork from December 2011 uploaded 4 Jan 2012...

Sat, 26 May 2012 11:57:55 +0800

Student artwork from December 2011 uploaded 4 Jan 2012 vs Poseidon by GENZOMAN on deviantArt, uploaded 2010.

(Of special interest: the marked difference between the rendering of Poseidon and his enemy.)

(What IS Adcom? Click through, read and share!)

Student artwork from November 2011 uploaded 6 Dec 2011...

Fri, 25 May 2012 12:01:21 +0800

Student artwork from November 2011 uploaded 6 Dec 2011 vs Catch by bpsola on deviantArt, uploaded 2010.

(What IS Adcom? Click through, read and share!)

I am a Malaysian and it infuriates me greatly to see that this is something that exist in my country. As an artist myself, I consider this to be an embarrassment. This is the first time I've heard of Adcom and I've not seen any of Adcom advertisements in public. Is there a possibility of any legal action against them?

Tue, 15 May 2012 17:18:51 +0800

(Disclaimer: Not at all a lawyer, unless you count watching Phoenix Wright parodies)

Unless the original owners of the works—Artgerm or Dave Allsop or Wizards of the Coast, for example—seek to pursue legal action, there’s not much we can do in that aspect.

What we can do is keep on spreading the word. TECH.C in Japan has already been made aware of the situation. The Tumblr’s creeping across Facebook (this is your hint to share it out again, everyone) and made it to Malaysia’s 1CiTiZEN project.

People have already started catching on and pointing out traced works on Adcom’s facebook. Let’s keep the awareness up and show them we won’t stand for this unethical behaviour!

Maintainer message

Mon, 14 May 2012 20:00:16 +0800

One of the team got blocked on Adcom’s Facebook over the weekend. Whoopsie! But a little bird tells us that word has gone to TECH.C in Tokyo, who are responsible at least in part for certifying student qualifications. What action they’ll take, if any, is hard to say.

As always, keep on spreading the word about Adcom’s use of traced and copied art in their promotional material, and let them know how you feel about their actions. [1] [2] Share the English/Malay versions of the facts we know with your circle.

If you see any art in Adcom ads that you can source, let us know through our ask/submit links.

Read. Share. Investigate!

Maintainer message

Sat, 12 May 2012 09:44:48 +0800

We’ve been tracking down a few more of the traced works Adcom has published to Facebook so far, and with your help we’ve found some genuinely facepalm-worthy examples. They’re being queued up as secondary support.

If you see an Adcom ad with content you have seen elsewhere, let us know through the ask/submit links.

Again, we also remind you to please reblog, link, tweet or share this blog within and beyond your circle. This is especially important for those working or residing in Malaysia and Singapore, as a creative professional of any capacity. Do check out the rest of the work-comparison posts on this Tumblr to help you make your judgement.

Feel free to contact Adcom [1] [2] and make your case, politely: that their use of traced/copied material in promotional items cannot be condoned and must not be repeated, and that their inaction at policing student works—or condoning the use of traced work in advertising—helps nobody.

Thanks so much for reading and supporting us. Read (ataupun Baca). Share. Investigate!

Adcom Mencuri/Menyurih/Meniru Karya [edisi BM]

Fri, 11 May 2012 12:48:00 +0800

Siapa atau apa itu Adcom?

Adcom ialah sebuah institusi latihan kreatif yang menggunakan teknik surihan (tracing) karya pihak lain sebagai kaedah pembelajaran. Ini bukanlah sesuatu yang serba baharu atau tak pernah didengar.

Tetapi Adcom telah melampaui batasan dengan menggunakan karya yang disurih dalam pengiklanan mereka.

Apa sebenarnya yang telah berlaku?

Bandingkan contoh pengiklanan Adcom (perhatikan juga cara lukisan ini dikaitkan kepada pelatih Louis Cheng)…dengan karya Wonder Woman Return daripada Stanley ‘Artgerm’ Lau.

Apabila ditegur oleh Lau di Facebook, Adcom tidak mengambil apa-apa tindakan selain daripada meminta maaf, dan menjelaskan “peniruan” mereka sebagai latihan asas.

Ianya lebih daripada itu. Tindakan ini membawa mudarat.

Kenapa pula tindakan ini memudaratkan?

Penggunaan karya yang ditiru atau disurih dalam bahan promosi mengelirukan orang ramai akan punca kreatif yang pertama dan asal karya tersebut.
Ia mewajarkan karya yang disurih sebagai 100% asli, sekali lagi tanpa mengakui puncanya.
Ia menghina hasil titik peluh pekarya yang asal, di mana karyanya sedang digunakan tanpa pengetahuannya untuk keuntungan pihak ketiga.
Ia memincangkan usaha kreatif asli para kakitangan dan pelatihnya, dengan sengaja atau tidak sengaja menjadikan mereka bersubahat dalam pencurian karya.
Ia tidak beretika dari segi profesional, dan memberi contoh yang buruk kepada generasi profesional kreatif sekarang dan akan datang.
Sepertimana diujar Todd Lockwood pada Facebook, tindakan ini melemahkan atau memusnahkan lindungan hakcipta. (Terima kasih kepada warga Facebook yang berkongsi hujah ini dengan kami!)

Tetapi ini hanya sekali kan?

Selepas siasatan yang lebih, adalah mungkin yang Adcom telah melakukan perkara ini sekurang-kurangnya ~~tiga~~ empat kali:

Jadi, apa yang saya boleh buat?

Sila reblog, meng-link, meng-tweet atau kongsikan blog ini dengan dan di luar kenalan anda. Ini penting, terutamanya untuk mereka yang bekerja atau menetap dalam Malaysia dan Singapura sebagai apa jua jenis profesional kreatif.

Jika anda melihat iklan Adcom yang mengandungi karya yang anda sudah temui di mana-mana, biarkan penyenggara tahu melalui butang ask/submit.

Hubungi juga Adcom [1] [2] dan bentangkan kes anda secara sopan: bahawa penggunaan karya yang disurih/ditiru dalam bahan pengiklanan mereka tidak boleh diizinkan dan tidak harus diulangi, dan juga ketiadaan tindakan dalam mengawasi karya pelatih—ataupun menghalalkan kegunaan surihan karya dalam pengiklanan—tidak memanfaatkan sesiapa. Malahan ia bukan sahaja menghalang diri mereka, tetapi industri kreatif serantau.

Siapa yang menyenggara blog ini?

Hanyalah seorang lagi profesional muda warga Malaysia. Saya tidak mendapat apa-apa manfaat daripada menghebohkan kegagalan dalam industri saya dan etikanya. Tetapi pencurian karya menjejaskan kita semua, dan saya tidak dapat berdiam diri di depan masalah ini yang amat menjejaskan orang lain dalam bidang kerja saya.

I saw your post regarding Adcom - with at least one stolen piece being published in a Wizards of the Coast game, and another using presumably authorized Wonder Woman art (as Lau has painted several covers for DC Comics) it might be worth contacting both DC and WotC regarding this situation. It's reprehensible what these guys are doing.

Thu, 10 May 2012 20:41:07 +0800

This is definitely something that can be done! If memory serves, the Cemetery Reaper’s original artist has also brought the incident to Wizards’ attention. As for Mr. Lau, the maintainer’s friend-of-a-colleague is willing to offer his services as a copyright lawyer should he wish to pursue legal action.

Unless he does, however, the best we can do is put the word out and keep it spreading. As always, thank you for the support and suggestions!

Nice work! Adcom obviously took down this ad after being confronted. Please consider to add a Chinese version of this article to further spread the news.

Thu, 10 May 2012 15:08:51 +0800

Thank you for your support! I’ll try to set up multilingual versions of the masterpost soon, but my Chinese is almost non-existent so it may take a while.

Adcom Ad, uploaded 4 Jan - 10 Jan 2012 [1] [2] [3], vs Chico...

Thu, 10 May 2012 11:22:00 +0800

Adcom Ad, uploaded 4 Jan - 10 Jan 2012 [1] [2] [3], vs Chico Bento by Tiago Hoisel, uploaded Feb 2011 [1] [2]

Thank you for your submission, Nico!

(What IS Adcom? Click through, read and share!)

Adcom Art Theft/Tracing/Copying

Wed, 09 May 2012 22:42:00 +0800

Who or what is Adcom?

Adcom is a creative training institute that uses artwork tracing as a method of learning. This is not something new or unheard of.

But Adcom has gone beyond the pale by using traced works in their advertising.

What exactly has happened?

Observe a sample of Adcom’s advertising (also note the drawing is credited to trainee Louis Cheng)…and Stanley ‘Artgerm’ Lau’s Wonder Woman Return illustration.

When confronted by Lau on Facebook, Adcom did not take any action beyond an apology, going so far to dismiss their “copying” as a simple training exercise.

It’s more than that. It’s harmful.

Why is this harmful?

Using traced and copied art in promotional material misleads the viewing public to their first and original creative source.
It legitimises traced works as 100% original, again without acknowledging their source.
It insults the effort put in by the original artist, whose art is being effectively used without their knowledge or permission for the profit of a third party.
It does a grave disservice to any original creative efforts of its staff and students, wittingly or unwittingly making them accomplice to art theft.
It is professionally unethical, and sets a bad example for the current and coming generation of creative professionals.
As Todd Lockwood pointed out in a Facebook share, these acts weaken or destroy copyright protection. (Thanks to the Facebooker who alerted us to this point!)

But it was just once, right?

Upon further investigation, it’s possible that Adcom has done this at least ~~three~~ four times:

So what can I do?

Please reblog, link, tweet or share this blog within and beyond your circle. This is especially important for those working or residing in Malaysia and Singapore, as a creative professional of any capacity.

If you see an Adcom ad with content you have seen elsewhere, let the maintainer know through the ask/submit button.

Also feel free to contact Adcom [1] [2] and make your case, politely: that their use of traced/copied material in promotional items cannot be condoned and must not be repeated, and that their inaction at policing student works—or condoning the use of traced work in advertising—helps nobody. In fact it hinders not just themselves, but the regional creative industry as a whole.

Who’s behind this, anyway?

Just another young Malaysian professional. It does me no good to point out the failings of my industry and its ethics. But art theft affects us all, and I cannot keep my silence on a problem that seriously affects others in my field.

Adcom Ad, uploaded 8 May 2012, vs Wonder Woman Return by Artgerm...

Wed, 09 May 2012 22:27:00 +0800

Adcom Ad, uploaded 8 May 2012, vs Wonder Woman Return by Artgerm on deviantArt, uploaded 13? December 2010.

(What IS Adcom? Click through, read and share!)