85 frantzeska papadopoulou skarp While all these developments were beneficial to the artist who was now able to reach a broader, even international market, and avoid the control and censorship of a patron, it also entailed a few hurdles or at least new parameters that required some attention. Dürer was a pioneer in both using technology as an integrated part of his artwork and in adopting his business model in the new reality. The applicable legal framework provided very little protection for the artist. At atime when art was produced mainly after the commission of a rich patron, issues pertaining to the economic compensation and protection of the artist against copies were solved in a rather uncomplicated manner. Now that the clientele was in principle anyone that could afford the rather limited price of a print, and where art was traded beyond the limits of national jurisdictions, the artist required an enhanced form of protection. Works of art as such were not protected, and copyright legislation had not yet been introduced. It was thus in principle possible for anyone to copy someone else’s works. Copying was not in any sense a new phenomenon, on the contrary it was considered a necessary part in the training of new artists or even a way of expressing admiration to the works of well-known masters. However, what was new was the scope and the radical effects copying had in the art world. Producing series of copies was rather inexpensive, and flooding the market with copies would fail the business model of original artists such as Dürer. Dürer was not only aware of the potential of technology but also of the potential and limitations of the legal system. He proved to be creative enough to exploit it to serve his interest. Contrary to Dürer where details of his life are documented in detail, there is very little information on Marcantonio Raimondi (hereinafter Marcantonio). There is no confirmed information as to where he was born and when and neither when he died and where. He lived the biggest part of his life in Bologna. There is certain documentation confirming that he was acquainted with Raphael while his artistic signature was the “MAF” monogram, that according to Vasari stands for Marc’Antonio de’ Franci.37 The alleged counterfeiter; Marcantonio Raimondi 37 According to Vasari, this was Marcantonio’s way of honoring his teacher, Francesco Francia.
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