ABSTRACT
This chapter looks at the global nature of intellectual property law, and connects it firstly to capitalism and then to the materiality of artworks and later still to the concept of the commons. It is often claimed that unlike prior international intellectual property agreements negotiated under the auspices of, for example, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), has teeth. Schizophrenic capitalism has proven that it is quite able to cope with and adapt more easily to societal changes, while (dogmatic/positive) law always seems to treat lines of flight that occur as un-imagined encounters that each time appear to upset the entire legal system anew. The two legislative strategies that have been employed so far in order to construct ownership of the artwork have been to construct it as either a privilege or a right. The intellectual property discourse concerning artworks often relies on two concepts namely the (immaterial) content and (material) carrier.
