Detail of steel sculpture by Aaron J. Alderman titled, When Lightning Strikes. I am always conflicted when photographing artwork created by others. If the photo is successful, how much credit is due to the artist, and is any due to my compostion, lighting, etc?
i never believed in going to a museum to photograph a piece of art work - you can get an expert reproduction of it in the gift shop!
when I photograph someone else's art work i hope i bring something of my eye and feeling to it, a detail seen in a different way, showing something beyond replicating the artists work - as you've done - an emotion, line, mood, perspective, light, etc.
This piece was displayed on a city sidewalk, so it might be more of a "street" photo than a "museum" photo. Here I have made an attempt to add a little bit my own perspective by framing the shot to make the shadow of the hand a significant compositional element. Thanks for noticing.
I still feel kind of weird about it. I do try to always give credit to the artist in my captions, but stiil, it feels a bit like stealing.
What you photographed was your vision of the original and therefore the success of failure of the print is all on you.
It is a darn good photograph!
If the art is on exhibit at a museum,normally, you are not supposed to take a photo without first requesting permission.
Having said all that today, at any museum, there are hundreds of persons with phone cameras taking all sorts of snapshots of the exhibits.
If it was a Street show all bets are off.
Thats my story and I sticking to it!
I think of this when photographing architecture. A photo of the whole building is just copying to my mind. Finding compositions from details can (not always) be art. In your case, showing a detail and its shadow lifts this to something different than a copy.