Art and property resale can be quite the bitch.
Purchasing rightful artworks from authorized sellers and resellers can be priced in gold, so why not take the other route? Plus, who knows if that $600 work will be thee investment you've sought after.
In 1973, however, an actual, physical altercation took place that would change California state laws governing resale royalties forever.
Robert Scull sold off many works at the Sotheby Parke-Bernet auction house, including Robert Rauschenberg's Thaw, which was sold for a monumental $85,000.
Rauschenberg confronted Scull outside the house screaming, "I've been working my ass off just for you to make that profit." Wham!
Rauschenberg would go on to lobby Congress to compensate artists when their works were resold, but to no avail.
But the bill passed in California, instating the California Resale Royalty Act of 1976 paying artist's 5 per cent royalty on resales over $1,000.
Now, a national droit de suite in the U.S. has sparked heated debates of imposing a similar act nationwide. Congressman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) is advancing a revised version of his Equity for Visual Artists Act of 2011, which also failed on the floor.
Last year, per the Art News Paper, a federal judge dismissed lawsuits brought by the estate of Robert Graham, Chuck Close and other artists against Christie's, Sotheby's and eBay on the grounds that the California law violated the Constitution by attempting to let one state regulate commerce in others.
And yet, as the only droit de suite in the U.S., California statue has proven to be an uneven case scenario. Perhaps it would be best to learn from mistakes before tampering with another unconstitutional bill.
The sentiment may be in place, but the actual execution may hinder artist's benefits--rather than provide for them.
A proposition possibly, here is Jori Finkel's take on the act.
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