Set Free

cc photo by alicepopkorn

Every January 1st is Public Domain Day which celebrates the expiration of the copyright of a year’s worth of works of authorship into the public domain.

While having a work’s copyright expire is great, what I think is even better is when a work is dedicated to the public domain on purpose by the creator.

True artists want their work to reach the greatest audience possible.

I’d say that people who want to limit their audience to people who will only give them money are more businessmen than artists.

I’m a huge fan of biomimicry, and that is why I choose to dedicate my work to the public domain. I’m following the footsteps of whomever created the universe. These creators don’t expect to be compensated for their work on the universe, they give us the choice to modify the universe for our needs, and they created the universe anonymously.

The creators of the universe are true artists.

That’s why Set Free was created, to show that consciously dedicating your work to the public domain can lead to amazing things. Set Free is a wiki that lists notable works dedicated to the public domain. You can view the list here.

To easily dedicate your own works to the public domain click here.

If you see an image similar to the following, that means the work is dedicated to the public domain. Click the image to view the formal dedication.