FREE WILLIE
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Important: By downloading this artwork you confirm that you are not part of the Disney Corporation, a member of the Disney Corporation, or in any way associated with the Disney Corporation. To the best of your knowledge, information, and belief, this artwork will not make its way into the hands of the Disney Corporation.
This project by Stuart Semple celebrates the long awaited liberation of the world’s most famous mouse.
For 95 years the original Steamboat Willie remained locked under corporate control after Disney lobbied repeatedly to extend copyright terms. The copyright has now finally expired, returning this early incarnation of the character to the public domain.
In recognition of this historic cultural moment, Stuart has created FREE WILLIE to mark the return of shared creative ownership. This is a celebration of artistic freedom, public domain culture, and the end of corporate exclusivity.
Disney and its associates are strictly prohibited from acquiring any work in this series.
About the work
This is a high resolution, scalable vector PDF of FREE WILLIE, created so anyone can use the work freely. You can print it, frame it, project it, remix it, redraw it, animate it, stencil it on a jacket, put it on a skateboard, screen print it onto posters or T-shirts, or use it as part of your own artwork. You can change it, distort it, transform it, or leave it exactly as it is. It is yours to work with in whatever creative way feels true to you.
The download comes with the Cultural Liberation License (CLL), which grants full permission for non commercial and commercial use of the image in any medium, format, or context, now and in the future. There is only one condition: the work may not be used by, sold to, licensed to, or knowingly made available to The Walt Disney Company or any of its associates. Beyond that, your creative freedom is absolute. Use it boldly.
About the artist
Stuart Semple b.1980 UK
Stuart Semple is a multidisciplinary British artist whose practice spans painting, performance, internet art, and installation. His works adopt a sociological lens to explore themes of youth politics, mass culture, image, technology, and anxiety. Often activist in nature, his broader projects frequently strive for fairness, equality, and access, particularly within the arts.
Semple has enjoyed numerous solo exhibitions worldwide and has presented projects at international institutions, including the Denver Art Museum, The Whitworth, Hong Kong Arts Center, and Dulwich Picture Gallery. He is the author of "Make Art or Die Trying," published by Quarto. Semple regularly speaks on art and mental health, with appearances at Oxford University, The Southbank Centre, Frieze, RCA, and the ICA