Visual Artists Ireland : Advocacy Lobbying and Representation

Visual Artists Ireland : Advocacy Lobbying and Representation: "

Artists Resale Right
Introduction

The principle of the Artists Resale Right is that it allows visual artists and their estates to a share in the increased value of their artworks whenever they are resold through auction or other public sale.

The Artists Resale Right or Droit de Suit (Right to Follow) is a type of copyright that is currently provided for by legislation in a majority of EU states.

Ireland is an exception and does not currently operate the artists resale right, however, an EU Directive was passed in 2001 which obliges all EU states to introduce the scheme by 2006. The process of drafting legislation for introducing the Artists Resale Right in Ireland has been slow but is currently underway.

While the EU directive sets some parameters on how the scheme should work it also gives individual states the freedom to make decisions over certain aspects of how the scheme might operate. It is in regard to these issues that the current campaign is centred.

Visual Artists Ireland very much welcomes the introduction of the scheme for the benefit of Irish artists and their heirs.

It is the ambition of Visual Artists Ireland to ensure that the scheme is introduced in Ireland as soon as possible and that legislation is drafted in a way, which provides the maximum potential for artists to benefit from the scheme.

One of the main issues yet to be decided is who will be responsible for collecting and re-distributing the Artists Resale Right. Visual Artists Ireland believes that it would be best for this role to be undertaken by an artist centred organisation. To this end it has worked with the Irish Copyright Licensing Agency and the Copyright Association of Ireland to establish a new organisation that it feels would be appropriate to carry out this task. This new organisation has been legally constituted and is titled the Irish Visual Artists Rights Organisation (IVARO).

The work that Visual Artists Ireland has been undertaking in relation to the Artists Resale Right is currently being channelled through IVARO.

See the dropdown menu for more information on the Resale Right, the Directive, our position and the campaign. See the main menu for more information on IVARO."