Wapping Blues
If your memory serves you well, You’ll remember you’re the one That called on me to call on them To get your favours done. And after every plan had failed And there was nothing more to tell, You…
The Dali Wrangle
Salvador Dali, a master of Surrealism died in 1989. A dozen or so years later his legacy has caused substantial legal problems of an equally surrealist nature. The litigants are the Gala Salvador Dali Foundation established by…
Conference Consequences
The British Art World is a notoriously diverse and divided community. The Whitechapel Conference organised by Artlaw on Jan 4, 1980, was remarkable in that it attracted an audience made up of a unique cross section of artists…
What if there has been a creative partnership between two artists and one of them wishes to leave?
If one artist leaves the collaboration, can the other artist to continue the work alone? The remaining artist should acknowledge the other…
Droit de Suite (1996)
On 13 March 1996 the European Commission published a proposal for a Directive to harmonise the law throughout the 15 member states of the European Union concerning artists’ resale royalty right, often called the ‘droit de…
Copyright
What works are covered / protected by copyright? What can I do if my work is used without my permission? When can I use copyright material without permission? How do I get permission to use copyrighted material (film, photography,…
What materials might I not be allowed to work with in my studio?
You must be aware of the ‘permitted uses’ of your studio. Often the landlord will want you to specify the actual nature of your art practice, as…
The Next Moves Forward, part 2
This month’s Artlaw continues and concludes the exploration of the newly elected Government’s past achievements and future policies in relation to the visual arts, and, in the context of joint European cultural, those policies…
Travellers Tales
The international nature of art activity involves many artists and administrators visiting foreign countries, particularly during the summer. Autumn heralds the start of the academic year in art schools and sees art students and lecturers returning, often from…
Fundamental Enquiries
A fundamental problem artists continually bring to Artlaw is the need for basic information and advice on how to set up and maintain a ‘business’ as an artist; it’s a question of survival. It has been the aim…
ArtlawTV
A series of short films exploring the main legal issues that artists face. Each film comprises an interview with an artist about their work, with an overview of the legal implications of their practice by Henry Lydiate, art legal…
Management Of Creativity 30 Years On
In October 1976 the first issue of Art Monthly carried the first Artlaw column. Have things improved, worsened, or stayed pretty much the same over the last 30 years? From Jennie Lee’s appointment as…
Posthumous Artworks
Blinky Palermo’s reputation was given a major boost through retrospective exhibitions in Barcelona and at London’s Serpentine Gallery in 2003. This, in turn, has led to funding recently being achieved by Edinburgh College of Art to ‘rescue’ one…
Licensing
Licensing can be a useful way to earn extra income by permitting other uses of your work in exchange for money What is licensing? When you license your work, you are giving permission to someone else to use your…
Charitable incorporated organisation
A Charitable Incorporated Organisation, or CIO, is a new legal form for a charity, brought in by the 2011 Charities Act. A CIO: is an incorporated form of charity which is not a company only has to…
When I Paint my Masterpiece
Dear Henry, Recently I was amazed to see a portrait I had painted reproduced photographically on a poster in the city where I live. I managed to acquire a copy of the poster and saw…
National Insurance
Employees and self employed people must also pay National Insurance (NI) as well to pay for benefits and pensions. NI is separate from income tax. It pays specifically for unemployment benefits for yourself if you become unemployed. If…
Collective Bargaining
Last month's column focused on the selling power of those few artists whose works have established a strong market value, and their ability to pick and choose – or blacklist – their purchasers or dealers. To redress the…