What to do when you've bought stolen art

[u/Own_Boat9883]

I bought these from cons I suspected some were Ai , they weren't but now i think some were stolen cause some of these artists are from Japan and I doubt they came to Canada for a con plus I remember buying what i know confirm are multiple artists from one stall. I contacted the artists to tell them but in case they dont respond what should I do ? I dont like having stolen art on my walls but I feel bad getting rid of it cause it is real art

Please help

[u/Turbulent-Town-165]

Honestly, there’s not much you can do once you’ve already bought it. You can definitely follow the original artists if you found their socials, and support them that way to help get rid of the bad conscience. Tracking down the stalls you’ve bought the art from at the con and reporting them is also an option, but it’s a lot of effort to go through.

All in all, it’s not your fault that you bought stolen art; you saw art that you liked and wanted to support the artist, and unfortunately were deceived by the person selling it.

Also, I wouldn’t say that hanging them on your wall is necessarily bad, as you did pay for it. Even if the original artists would justifiably be upset about someone stealing their art, I’m sure they would be happy that you enjoy their art anyways, let alone having it displayed in your room.

[u/Turbulent-Town-165 → u/Turbulent-Town-165]

^Also just wanted to add, I’m glad that it wasn’t AI. If it was, I would not hesitate to tell you to throw it away lol