MFAH Terms & Conditions


The MFAH is committed to protecting the privacy and personal information of its constituents.

Access to and use of the MFAH website (“Site”) is subject to the following terms and conditions (“Terms & Conditions”) as well as all applicable federal and state laws. By accessing the MFAH website, you (“User”) unconditionally accept without modification the MFAH Terms & Conditions and agree to be bound by its terms. User acknowledges that the MFAH may revise Terms & Conditions at any time without notice. By accepting the Terms & Conditions, the User agrees not to use the MFAH Site in order to violate any laws or to interfere with the operation of the Site.

1) USER PRIVACY
The MFAH is committed to protecting the privacy of its website visitors in accordance with applicable laws and regulations. All information gathered from you in connection with your use of the MFAH website is governed by the MFAH Privacy Policy. Please note that the MFAH website is not specifically dedicated to children and the MFAH does not actively solicit information from children. Children under the age of 12 are required to obtain permission from an adult before submitting information to the MFAH.

2) TRADEMARKS
Many of the trademarks, service marks, and logos (the “Trademarks”) displayed on this Site, including “The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston,” are registered and unregistered marks of the MFAH. Trademarks of third parties may also be displayed on this Site. Nothing contained in this Site should be construed as granting, by implication, estoppel, or otherwise, any license or right to use any Trademarks displayed on the Site without the express written permission of the MFAH or any third party that may own the Trademarks displayed on the Site. Any unauthorized use of the Trademarks or any other Materials, except as authorized in these Terms & Conditions, is strictly prohibited.

3) COPYRIGHT
All text, images, and data including without limitation audio and video, software, documentation, and other information on the MFAH Site (the “Materials”) are protected by copyright and may be covered by other restrictions as well. The MFAH retains all rights, including copyright to Materials. Copyright and other proprietary rights may be held by third parties other than, or in addition to, the MFAH. The MFAH has made every effort to ensure that the reproduction of all content on the pages of the MFAH Site is done in accordance with U.S. copyright law and with approval of the copyright owners. The MFAH also recognizes its responsibility to provide access to its collection as an educational tool. The images on the MFAH Site are posted under fair use guidelines and adhere to the AAMD guidelines for online collection images.

4) AUTHORIZED USES
Commercial use of any Materials on the MFAH Site is expressly forbidden. Materials are made available for limited non-commercial, educational, and personal use only, or for “fair use” as defined below. The User may download Materials from the Site for his or her own personal use (subject to any additional terms or restrictions that may be applicable to the individual file or program), provided the User retains all copyright and other proprietary notices and cites the artist, title, date, and source of the Materials (just as a user would attribute the source of material from a printed work). All citations should include the URL www.mfah.org but not in any way that implies endorsement of the User or User’s use of the Materials. Materials may not be altered in any way. By downloading, printing, or otherwise using Materials, Users agree that they will limit their use of such Material to non-commercial, educational, personal, or fair use and will not violate the MFAH proprietary rights or any other party’s proprietary rights. The MFAH does not warrant that use of the Materials displayed on the Site will not infringe the rights of third parties not owned by or affiliated with the MFAH. Materials protected by copyright owned by a third party may not be used in any form (meaning that such Materials may not be copied or downloaded) without prior permission from the holder of the underlying copyright. Copying or redistributing Materials in any manner for commercial use (including scholarly publication), or for personal gain is strictly prohibited.

5) FAIR USE
Fair use is defined as use of copyrighted Materials for noncommercial purposes, such as teaching, scholarship, criticism, commentary, and news reporting (See, e.g., Title 17, Section 107 of the Copyright Act and the “Teach Act”). For use of images in accordance with fair use guidelines, Users may download, print or use Materials from the Site and may do so without MFAH express permission. Users must cite the artist, title, date, and source of Materials, and the citations should include the URL www.mfah.org but not in any way that implies endorsement of the User or User’s use of the Materials.

6) PUBLIC DOMAIN
Materials that the MFAH believes to be in the public domain (“Public Domain”), which are identified as Public Domain on the Site, may be downloaded for limited non-commercial, educational, and personal use only, or for “fair use” as defined by U.S. copyright laws. By providing the Public Domain mark on the Site, the MFAH does not represent or warrant that the work associated with the mark is not protected by copyright or any other intellectual property right which may arise by U.S. statute, common law, or international law. The Public Domain mark on the Site merely indicates that the MFAH is unaware of any current copyright restrictions on the Materials so designated, either because the copyright has expired or no evidence has been found that copyright restrictions apply. Works identified with a Public Domain mark are provided as-is, where-is, and no use by User of a work identified with a Public Domain mark shall rely on any representation that the work may be used commercially or non-commercially; that the work may be used absent a license; that the copyright in the work has expired; or that the User’s use of the work constitutes a fair use pursuant to Title 17, Section 107 of the Copyright Act. In addition, authorized non-commercial uses for Materials shall include scholarly publications in any media. Users must cite the artist, title, date, and source of Materials, and the citations should include the URL www.mfah.org but not in any way that implies endorsement of the User or User’s use of the Materials.

7) IMAGE REPRODUCTION
Use of Materials other than those listed above is expressly prohibited without prior authorization. Anyone wishing to use the Materials from this Site for purposes other than as authorized herein or wishing to obtain a high-resolution image must obtain prior written approval from the MFAH, via its Photographic and Imaging Services Manager, c/o MFAH, P.O. Box 6826, Houston, TX, 77265 or webeditor@mfah.org by email. Requests for commercial use must include the name of the requester, intended use, author/publisher, anticipated date of publication, requested image, and photography format requirements. Permission for such use is granted on a case-by-case basis at the sole discretion of the MFAH. A licensing fee may be charged depending on the nature of the proposed use. The MFAH reserves the right not to grant permission to use the Materials, and does not grant permission to use Materials of third parties.

8) DIGITAL MILLENNIUM COPYRIGHT ACT NOTIFICATION
The MFAH respects the intellectual property of others, and we ask Users of the MFAH Site to do the same. The MFAH may, in appropriate circumstances and at its discretion, take reasonable steps to disable and/or terminate access to the MFAH Site of Users who may be repeat infringers of copyright. If you believe that your work has been copied in a way that constitutes copyright infringement, please provide the following information to MFAH Copyright Agent: 

A) a description of the copyrighted work that you claim has been infringed;
B) a description of where the material that you claim is infringing is located on the MFAH Site;
C) your address, telephone number, and email address;
D) a statement by you that you have a good-faith belief that the disputed use is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; and
E) a statement by you, made under penalty of perjury, that the above information in your notice is accurate and that you are the copyright or intellectual property owner or authorized to act on the copyright or intellectual property owner’s behalf;
F) an electronic or physical signature of the person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of the copyright

The Museum’s agent for notice of claims of copyright infringement can be reached as follows:

By Mail
The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston
Attn: Photographic and Imaging Services Manager
1001 Bissonnet
Houston, TX 77005
By Email
DMCA_Agent@mfah.org
By Telephone
713.639.7300

9) SUBMISSIONS
Any communication or material you post, transmit, or distribute to the MFAH Site by electronic mail or otherwise, including any data or other content, questions, comments, suggestions, or the like, is and will be treated as nonconfidential and nonproprietary. Anything you transmit or post may be used by MFAH or its affiliates for any purpose, including but not limited to, reproduction, disclosure (to law enforcement entities or others), transmission, publication, broadcast, and posting. Furthermore, the MFAH is free to use any ideas, concepts, know-how, or techniques contained in any communication you send to the MFAH Site for any purpose whatsoever including but not limited to, developing, manufacturing, and marketing products using such information.

10) INDEMNIFICATION
User agrees to indemnify, defend, and hold MFAH and its Trustees, employees, affiliates, officers, agents, co-branders, and other partners, harmless from all claims, causes, allegations, costs, expenses, fees (including reasonable attorneys’ fees), judgments, liabilities, losses, and damages, including copyright infringement, made by any third party due to or arising from or in connection with User’s use of the Site or any of its Materials.

11) DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES
Without limitation, all Materials on the Site are provided “AS IS” WITHOUT A WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR USE, AND/OR NON-INFRINGEMENT. THE MFAH DOES NOT WARRANT THAT THE SITE WILL PROVIDE CONTINUOUS, PROMPT, SECURE, OR ERROR-FREE SERVICE. MFAH MAKES REASONABLE, ONGOING EFFORTS TO REVISE AND UPDATE THE SITE, BUT ASSUMES NO LIABILITY FOR ANY ERRORS OR OMISSIONS, INCLUDING THE INACCURACY OF CONTENT, OR FOR ANY DAMAGES OR LOSSES THAT YOU OR ANY THIRD PARTY MAY INCUR AS A RESULT OF THE UNAVAILABILITY OF THE SITE. MFAH ASSUMES NO RESPONSIBILITY, AND SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR, ANY DAMAGES TO, OR VIRUSES THAT MAY AFFECT, YOUR COMPUTER EQUIPMENT OR OTHER PROPERTY ARISING FROM YOUR USE OF THE SITE, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE REPRODUCTION OF THE CONTENT OR COMPILATION.

12) LIMITATION OF LIABILITY
The MFAH is not liable for any indirect, special, or incidental loss of business, los of profits or consequential damages, whether based on breach of contract, warranty, tort, negligence, product liability or otherwise, even if advised of the possibility of such damage.

13) LINKING TO OTHER SITES
The MFAH Site contains hyperlinks to other internet sites not under its control. These hyperlinks are not express or implied endorsements or approvals by MFAH of any products, services, or information from these sites. Likewise, the MFAH is not responsible for the content of any off-site pages or other sites linked to the Site. Linking to any off-site pages or other sites is at User’s own risk.

14) CHOICE OF LAW/JURISDICTION AND VENUE
The Terms & Conditions shall be governed and construed in accordance with applicable Texas and federal law. Any case, controversy, suit, action, or proceeding arising out of, in connection with, the Terms & Conditions shall be brought in the appropriate federal or state court located in Harris County, Texas, and the parties hereby waive any objection that they may have to personal jurisdiction in these courts. Any claim arising under the Terms & Conditions must be brought within one (1) year after such claim or cause of action arose or will be forever barred.

15) ENTIRE AGREEMENT
The Terms & Conditions represent the entire agreement between the User and the MFAH. The failure of the MFAH to exercise or enforce any right or provision shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision.