Some of the art used in icons has been passed around for so long that nobody knows who the artist is anymore. Some, I guessing, are probably too timid or lazy to ask. A small percentage might have tried to PM or email about it and never got a response (maybe the letter didn't go through, the artist switched accounts, the artist left the internet, etc.) so they assumed no news was good news. And a lot assume that if the artist doesn't say, "hey, my art isn't for use on livejournal! Don't make icons from it!" then it means she's okay with it.
I don't have a problem with usage, and neither do my friends who draw fanart themselves. You would be surprised at the number of artists on Deviantart who don't mind iconing ("don't claim it as your own" =/= "don't use it for graphics"). Of course there are those out there who are dislike it too, but I don't think there are as many as some people think there is. If the artist herself tells you, on a journal entry or personally or whatever, then take it down. If not, it's free game until she makes an announcement. You're not breaking the law if there's no law to break, you see.
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Some of the art used in icons has been passed around for so long that nobody knows who the artist is anymore. Some, I guessing, are probably too timid or lazy to ask. A small percentage might have tried to PM or email about it and never got a response (maybe the letter didn't go through, the artist switched accounts, the artist left the internet, etc.) so they assumed no news was good news. And a lot assume that if the artist doesn't say, "hey, my art isn't for use on livejournal! Don't make icons from it!" then it means she's okay with it.
I don't have a problem with usage, and neither do my friends who draw fanart themselves. You would be surprised at the number of artists on Deviantart who don't mind iconing ("don't claim it as your own" =/= "don't use it for graphics"). Of course there are those out there who are dislike it too, but I don't think there are as many as some people think there is. If the artist herself tells you, on a journal entry or personally or whatever, then take it down. If not, it's free game until she makes an announcement. You're not breaking the law if there's no law to break, you see.