Archive of Henry Lydiate‘s Artlaw column, published in Art Monthly since 1976. Have a legal question about your career? Check our Directory or send us a legal query.
Artists’ right to unemployment benefit
At a time of mass unemployment and world wide recession, how does the unemployed artist fare in the welfare state? Will unemployment or supplementary benefits be paid? Does the state have a duty to meet…
Lofty Ideals
Studio space and living space, separate or combined, is essential and can be very difficult for visual artists to come by. ‘What kind of house is this, ‘ he said. ‘Where I have come to roam?’ ‘It’s not…
The Momart Fire
At 3.40am on Monday May 24 2004 fire fighters received the alarm call, and the blaze at one of Momart’s warehouses lasted five days. Media coverage was extensive and worldwide, for what was a devastating single act…
Morals, Mores & Minors
Lewis Carroll and Edgar Degas in the 19th Century, Balthazar Klossowski (Balthus) and Robert Mapplethorpe in the 20th Century, and Tierney Gearon and Annalies Strba at the beginning of this century, each produced artworks that were…
Damage to Work
Damage to work can be a real problem, particularly when it’s discovered during a show. Although artists and galleries tend to rely on insurance companies to pay for restoration costs, there have been an increasing number of…
One of my works was damaged while on display in a gallery.
Can the gallery deduct any money from the insurance claim as commission? As the work has been damaged while on display, the gallery has neglected their duty of…
ArtlawTV: David Mabb on Art and Appropriation
Art and Appropriation – when does artistic freedom become copyright infringement Artist David Mabb considers works in his practice, including a run in with Magnum Photos and appropriating the work of William Morris.…
A Developing Global Framework
Copyright laws were created in direct response to the development of industrial technologies that enabled unique paintings and drawings to be copied and mechanically reproduced in multiple numbers. The development of engraving and multiple printing techniques…
Dragon’s Dance
This is the tale of Dragon’s Dance. It is a sculpture by Liliane Lijn sited at the landscaped entrance to a new Marks & Spencer shopping centre at Culverhouse Cross, Cardiff in Wales. ‘Senor, Senor, I can see…
What material (film, music, photography, literature etc) do I not need permission to use?
Copyright lasts for the whole life of the creator of the work plus 70 years, passing on their death to their estate or heirs, so a…
Three Short and Unrelated Matters
Three short and unrelated matters are tackled this month: Contractual Relationships, Public Lending Right and Solicitors’ Advertising. Paper Promises How many contracts have you made today? Bet you travelled on a bus, tube, train, bought…
First Year Report
On February 14, 2007, the UK Artists’ Resale Right (ARR) will have been operating for a full year, and this piece considers how well it has been implemented, principally in the UK. In September 2006 we reported…
In Defence of the Image
Does copyright law stifle creativity, or does it protect and encourage creativity by enforcing the legal and moral rights of original authors? ‘A good composer does not imitate, he steals.’ Igor Stravinsky T S Eliot…
New UK Legislation Part 2
Amended ‘permitted acts’: criticism, review, and news reporting Fair dealing with copyright works for the purposes of criticism or review have long been ‘permitted acts’, provided a sufficient acknowledgement of the copyright owner accompanied any…
Mortality/Immortality
The Getty Conservation Institute recently organised a unique conference in Los Angeles, California, under the title ‘Mortality/Immortality: The Legacy of 20th Century Art’ to debate whether and, if so, how many contemporary works should be conserved. It was addressed…
Working as an artist: part I
On the evening of October 4 1979, in London, Eduardo Paolozzi (EP), his assistant Marlee Robinson (MR), John Hoyland (JH) and Brian Clarke (BC) met and recorded a discussion with lawyer Henry Lydiate (HL)…
The Rothko Wrangle
ONE A tale of an ill drawn Will and 798 paintings told in two parts. ‘Silence is so accurate’. Mark Rothko once stated in a conversation with Elaine de Kooning. A bitter irony indeed when we consider…
Dear Shane
Artlaw Services Ltd in voluntary liquidation. Can this be so? You cannot believe it. You do deserve a full explanation; Shane Simpson, LLB, Barrister Director Arts Law Centre of Australia Sydney Dear Shane, Artlaw Services Ltd in voluntary…