HOME | ARTIST STATEMENT | PORTFOLIO | GALLERY | WORKSHOPS | CALENDAR | LINKS | CONTACT
Attention Arts Organizations and Individual Artists 7.15.05
Consider including State Consignment articles in your newsletters
and web sites
Subject: ARIZONA STATE CONSIGNMENT LAWS* for artists and craftspeople
ARIZONA STATE CONSIGNMENT
ARTICLES
*
Ideally
Artists and Galleries work well together to promote the arts,
business, and artists.
Most galleries are sincerely interested in making a profit
and promoting artists in a true win/win fashion. Most interactions work well for the benefit of both. ALTHOUGH The Arizona
Consignment Articles: require
galleries to pay to the artist within 30 days after the sale of their work,
holds galleries "STRICTLY LIABLE" for the art while in their
possession and requires written contracts between artists and galleries
adequately protects artists, these State Consignment Articles aren't well known
or easily enforced.
Since 1987
I've taught
“That’s Art Biz, a business workshop for visual artists.” Over the
years
students and other artists shared sad, bad stories about
galleries who are
either ignorant of the Arizona State Consignment laws or choose
to disregard
them. Artists report late or non-payment, damage, misuse, works
displayed
without identification and no contracts. Since 2003 the amount
of artists
calling me to discuss non-payment or late payment has sky
rocketed. Since
2003 I personally have experienced galleries not paying on time
or refusing to
pay for missing or broken items, totaling over a fifth of my
yearly income. I began searching for better gallery representation, but
MOST galleries
offered contracts that claim NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR LOSS OR
DAMAGE, required
exclusives but wouldn't put their promotional promises in
writing or refused to
use contracts at all. What’s an artist to do? Each of us can’t afford the time, expense and misery of going to court for
each and every infraction and many of us can no longer make a living accepting
these business losses. I've invested thirty years, my entire adult life, developing
my art, living frugally, working hard long hours, continually minimizing the
material quality of my life, making personal sacrifices and hoping--as my art
improved, I developed good business procedures and found good ethical gallery
representation--I'd have a little financial security and earn higher than the
federal poverty standard. The
current norm in gallery ethics destroys that hope, making a joke of my careful
frugal life. I can't find ethical
gallery representation to maintain my previous minimalist livelihood. I’m saddened when I hear another creative person say they gave up their
art career because they couldn’t make a living.
ALL
artists and gallery owners must be aware of the
attached consignment laws!
For years I've brought these issues to artists' and art
organizations' attention. I've written letters, made phone
calls and spoken to numerous art groups,
educating artists and making them aware of their rights. Many
galleries seem
unaware of their legal obligations. When more artists demand
fair
treatment, citing the consignment laws, more outlets taking our
work on
consignment will treat us fairly. Each individual artist
faces
losing gallery representation when requesting fair treatment
under the law,
without these consignment laws being common knowledge.
Although my
efforts teaching "That's Art Biz'" have educated artists on a
limited
scale, I don't have the time OR resources to launch an extensive
comprehensive
STATEWIDE notification of artists and galleries. If art organizations make the state consignment
articles public knowledge for all ARIZONA artists and galleries, artists can go back
to work in our studios doing what we do best. Please
publish these articles in your newsletter and web site.
Major concerns If you are currently making
art but don’t require an income as an artist, PLEASE stand up for your rights,
knowing your acts of solidarity protect other artists.
Joy L. Holdread Clay Objects Studio 2627 N. Geronimo Ave.
Tucson, AZ 85705-4724
ARTICLE
12. CONSIGNMENTS OF WORKS OF FINE ART
Current to the best of my knowledge but not inclusive. Additional laws affect artists. Laws 1983, Ch. 144, % 3 provides: 44-1771. Definitions
1. "Art dealer" means a person engaged in the business
of selling works of fine art, other than a person exclusively engaged in the
business of selling goods at public auction.
2. "Artist" means the creator of a work of fine art.
3. "On consignment" means delivered to an art dealer
for the purpose of sale or exhibition, or both, to the public by the art dealer
other than at a public auction.
4. "Work of fine art" means an original or multiple
original artworks which is:
(a) A visual rendition,
including a painting, drawing, sculpture, mosaic or photograph.
(b) A work of calligraphy.
(c) A work of graphic art,
including an etching, lithograph, offset print or silkscreen.
(d) A craft work in material,
including clay, textile, fiber, wood, metal, plastic or glass.
(e) A work in mixed media,
including a collage or a work consisting of any combination of subdivisions a-d.
44-1772. Art dealer and
artists: relationship
1. The art dealer is, with respect to that work of fine art, the
agent of the artist.
2. The work of fine art is trust property and the art
dealer is trustee for the benefit of the artist until the work of fine art is
sold to a bona fide third party or returned to the artist.
3. The proceeds of the sale of the work of fine art are trust
property and the art dealer is trustee for the benefit of the artist until
the amount due the artist from the sale is paid.
4. The art dealer is strictly liable for the loss of or damage to the work of fine art, while it is in the art dealer's possession. The value of the work of fine art is, for the purpose of this section, the value established in a written agreement between the artist and art dealer prior to the loss of damage or, if no written agreement regarding the value of the work of fine art exists, the fair market value of the work of fine art.
44-1773. Purchase or resale of consigned fine art by art dealer 44-1774. Trust property exempt from claims of art dealer's creditors Notwithstanding title 47, no property, which is trust property under % 44-1772 and % 44-1773, is subject to the claims, liens, or security interests of the creditors of the art dealer.
44-1775. Art dealer
required to obtain written contract 1. The value of the work of fine art.
2. The time within which the proceeds of the sale are to be paid
to the artist, if the work of fine art is sold.
3. The minimum price for the sale of the work of fine art.
B. If an art dealer violates this section a court may, at the
request of the artist, void the obligation of the artist to that art dealer or
to a person to whom the obligation is transferred, other than a holder in due
course.
44-1776. Art dealer; duties
1. Notice is given to users or viewers that the work of fine art is the work
of the artist.
2. The artist’s gives prior written consent to the particular
use or display.
B. An art dealer who sells a work of fine art
which is on consignment for the purpose of sale shall transmit all moneys due to
the artist on a monthly basis.
44-1777. Waver Voided
44-1778. Civil Penalty
A. Any
art dealer who violates % 44-1775 or 44-1776 (contract & display) is liable
to the artist in an amount equal to:
1. Five
hundred dollars ($500).
2. The
actual damages, if any, including the incidental and consequential damages,
sustained by the artist by reason of the violation and reasonable attorney fees. Current to the best
of my knowledge AZ State Revised Statutes
ARTICLE
2.1. FRAUDULENT PRACTICES IN
THE SALE OF INDIAN ARTS AND CRAFTS
44-1231. Definitions In this article, unless the context otherwise requires: 1. "Authentic Indian arts and crafts" means any product, which is Indian, hand-crafted and is not made by machine or from unnatural materials, except stabilized or treated turquoise. 2. "Findings" means an ingredient part of the product which adapts the product for wearing or display, including silver beads, leather backing, binding material, bolo tie clips, tie bar clips, tie tack pins, earring pins, earring clips, earring screw backs, cuff link toggles, money clips, pin stems, combs or chains. 3. "Imitation turquoise" means any compound of mineral, which is manufactured or treated so as to closely approximate turquoise in appearance. 4. "Indian" means a person who is enrolled or who is a lineal descendant of one enrolled upon an enrollment listing of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, or upon the enrollment listing of a recognized Indian tribe domiciled within the United States border. 5. "Indian hand-crafted" means the skillful and expert use of the hands in making products solely by Indians within the United States, including the use of findings, hand tools and equipment for buffing, polishing, grinding, drilling or sewing. 6. "Made by machine" means the producing or reproducing of a product in mass production by mechanically stamping, casting, blanking or weaving. 7. "Natural turquoise" means turquoise, exclusive of any backing material, whose composition has not been chemically or otherwise altered. 8. "Nonauthentic Indian arts and crafts" means any product which is made to imitate or resemble authentic Indian arts and crafts and which is either: (a) Not Indian handcrafted. (b) Made by machine or from unnatural materials, except stabilized or treated turquoise. 9. "Reconstituted turquoise" means dust and turquoise particles, which are mixed with plastic resins and are compressed into a solid form so as to resemble natural turquoise. 10. "Stabilized turquoise" means turquoise, which has been chemically hardened, but not adulterated so as to change the color of the natural mineral. 11. "Treated turquoise" means turquoise, which has been altered to produce a change in coloration of the natural mineral. 12. "Turquoise" means a hydrous copper sulfate; containing aluminum salts, plus iron. 13. "Unnatural turquoise" means any substance, which is not natural
turquoise, including stabilized turquoise, treated turquoise, reconstituted
turquoise or imitation turquoise. 44-1231.01. Unlawful Acts It
is unlawful for any person to knowingly do any of the following: |