Everything you wanted to know about using paintings in advertising:
from the "do’s" to the "don’ts"

Visual content is an indispensable lever for audience engagement, and marketers, content creators, and entrepreneurs understand this well. At first glance, masterpieces of painting are a sure bet: they instantly catch the eye, carry cultural value, and seem to "belong to everyone." But is it acceptable to use, say, a fragment of the Mona Lisa or a Levitan painting to insert into an advertising layout or a social media post? Together with 39 websites , we’ll explore how this issue is regulated by law and the approaches adopted in different countries.

When a work becomes publicly available

The main benchmark is the duration of exclusive rights to a work. In Russia and many other countries, this is 70 years after the author’s death. The countdown begins on January 1 of the year following the creator’s death.

Once this period expires, the work enters the public domain: it can be copied, distributed, and used commercially without the consent of the artist’s heirs or compensation. For example, Isaac Levitan died in 1900, so his paintings are free to use today — reproductions can be used without restrictions.

Hidden Risks: Where Problems Lurk

In practice, the situation is not always so straightforward: there are a number of subtleties due to which even seemingly harmless use can turn out to be a violation.

• Reproduction rights. It’s important to distinguish between the painting itself and its photograph or digital copy. Although it’s often assumed that a photograph doesn’t constitute a new copyright object for two-dimensional works, in reality, it all depends on the jurisdiction. In the EU, there’s a rule that a reproduction can be protected if the photograph is the result of the photographer’s creative work. Therefore, if you take a photograph of a painting from a museum catalog, it may be subject to separate rights.
• Special National Rules. Some countries have special regulations for the protection of cultural heritage. The most prominent example is Italy, where the Code of Cultural Heritage requires permission and payment for the commercial use of national heritage assets, even if copyright has expired. Italian courts have repeatedly fined companies for using Michelangelo’s "David" or Botticelli’s "Birth of Venus" in advertising, arguing that such advertising detracts from the artistic and cultural significance of the works.
• Extending the term of protection in Russia. Russian law provides for cases in which the standard 70-year term may be extended:
  • in the case of posthumous rehabilitation of an author who was subjected to repression, the countdown of 70 years begins on January 1 of the year following the year of rehabilitation;
  • If the author participated in the Great Patriotic War or worked during this period, the protection period is increased by 4 years.

Fragments of paintings: is it possible to use part of the work?

There’s no specific legal provision that specifically regulates the use of fragments. The general principle applies: if a painting has entered the public domain, then any recognizable portion of it is also free for use. Conversely, if exclusive rights to the original are still in effect, then permission from the copyright holder is required to use even a small fragment.

Use in public spaces

Article 1276 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation permits the free use of works permanently located in public spaces (for example, sculptures in parks and on streets). However, there are significant caveats:

• the image of the work should not be the main element of the frame;
• It cannot be used for profit making.

This means that publishing a photo of the embankment on social media where the sculpture is visible as part of the overall view is acceptable. However, making this sculpture the central object of an advertising layout and using it to promote a product would most likely be a violation.

What is important for businesses and authors to remember

To confidently use classical works in commercial projects, three conditions must be met simultaneously:

1. Make sure that the copyright protection period has actually expired (more than 70 years have passed since the author’s death).
2. Check whether the reproduction you have chosen is protected as an independent copyright object.
3. Take into account the national restrictions of the country where you plan to distribute advertising or content (this is especially critical when working with Italian cultural heritage).

The safest approach is to create original visual content or license images from reputable photo banks. If you plan to rely on classical paintings, it’s best to ensure in advance that you’re using an image from a source clearly designated as public domain. It’s also important to remember the author’s moral rights: even when exclusive rights no longer apply, the obligation to attribute the work’s creator remains.