Developed by curator, art dealer, and writer seth siegelaub in conjunction with attorney robert projansky, the artists reserved rights transfer. Siegelaub the artists reserved rights transfer and sale agreement. Courtesy essex street, new york t here is no art without you. The 11 contracts that every artist, songwriter and producer should know hardcover february 1, 2017. Its stated aim was to change the power relations on the art market more in favor of the artists. Artist contract public art program this agreement dated the xx day of month, 200x. The 11 contracts that every artist, songwriter and producer. From the library of seth siegelaubjan motbrussels2014. In this case, we just uncovered a batch of seth siegelaub s original artist s reserved rights transfer and sale agreement in poster format from 1971. Seth siegelaub s the artist s reserved rights transfer and sale agreement.
Seth siegelaub s artist s contract, a document with continuing relevance in the art world. This contract, created 1971 by bob projansky and seth siegelaub, was designed to become a standard artist agreementform to be used and be reproduced freely. Developed through conversations with members of the art world and written with the help of lawyer robert projansky in 1971, seth siegelaubs artists reserved rights transfer and sale agreement was designed to safeguard the economic interests of artists, particularly in the case of an artworks resale, reproduction, or rental. A pdf of the artists contract is available through primary information. The agreement form has been designed to be used by the artist at the time of. Negotiating the contract, by ilise benun artists network. Siegelaub ran his own gallery, seth siegelaub contemporary art in manhattan from 1964 to 1966. In the event of a breach of contract by the promoter with respect to the provisions in this contract, the artist shall be entitled. The artists reserved rights transfer and sale agreement, according to siegelaub, defined and attempted to protect the rights and interests of the artist as their work circulated within the art.
But in 1971, two associates of a selfstyled art workers coalition, seth siegelaub and robert projansky, created the artists contract, a form agreement designed to explain what artists want and help them get it. Adrian piper and hans haacke successfully used a version of the artists reserved rights transfer and sale agreement coauthored by exhibition organizer and curator seth siegelaub and attorney robert projansky in 1971. The work was included in their exhibition on the art workers coalition for ps1. In 1971 siegelaub created the artist s reserved rights transfer and sale agreement, also referred to as the artist s contract. Changesbreach of contract this agreement may not be changed, modified or altered except by an instrument in writing signed by an authorized representative of both promoter and artist. Seth siegelaub s artist s contract its pretty thrilling when an item youve been on the lookout for years finally turns up. Developed through conversations with members of the art world and written with the help of lawyer robert projansky in 1971, seth siegelaubs artists reserved. As an independent curator, he played a vital role in the emergence of conceptual art between 1966 and 1972, working with artists such as carl andre, robert barry, douglas huebler, joseph kosuth, and lawrence weiner. Conceptual art, law, contract, seth siegelaub, certificates, art. A nonrefundable deposit of 50% is required before the artist begins work on the commission and is due upon signing this contract. The artist s reserved rights transfer and sale agreement. Among his groundbreaking projects were the xerox book 1968 and. Artist by such corporation shall be excluded from artists gross monthly earnings for the purpose of calculating the compensation due to manager hereunder.
The purchaser shall have a right to inspect the work in progress upon reasonable notice to the artist. This contract, created 1971 by bob projansky and seth siegelaub, was designed to become a standard artist agreementform to be used and be reproduced. Acknowledging the unusual scope and essentially unclassifiable nature of his manifold interests and activities, this volume shows how siegelaubs projects and collections are underpinned by a deeper. The threepage agreement on the following pages has been drafted by bob projansky, a new york lawyer, after my extensive discussions and correspondence with over 500 artists, dealers, collectors, museum people, critics and others. Contract to commission an artwork linda witte henke. The 11 contracts that every artist, songwriter and. The artists reserved rights transfer and sale agreement also known as the artists contract was created by curator, dealer, and publisher of conceptual art seth siegelaub, and lawyer robert projansky. Under the terms of the licence agreement, an individual user may print out a pdf of a. Textiles collected by seth siegelaub for the centre for social research on old textiles, raven row, 1 march 6 may 2012, london 2012 january 531, 2012, pavillon am milchhof, 5 31 january 2012, greatest hits, berlin 2012 after seth siegelaub ed. The artists reserved rights transfer and sale agreement w. The artist s reserved rights transfer and sale agreement also known as the artist s contract was created by curator, dealer, and publisher of conceptual art seth siegelaub, and lawyer robert projansky. The artists reserved rights transfer and sale agreement was created by curator, dealer, and publisher of conceptual art seth siegelaub, and lawyer robert projansky. Artist, market demand, and gallery knowledge of its inventory, buyers and pricepoints. Artist agrees to provide gallery, in a timely fashion and upon request, with any.
Siegelaub and primary information first began collaborating in 2008, when primary information approached siegelaub about reproducing the artists contract, a legal document about artists rights, as a pdf for download. This is an agreement, made and entered into by and between the economic development department of the city of santa cruz, a political subdivision of the state of california, hereinafter referred to as the city, and artistcontractor hereinafter called the artist. Artist agrees to abide by gallery decision regarding pricesetting. This publication is part of maria eichhorns project the artists contract. In 1971, american conceptual artist seth siegelaub worked with lawyer robert projansky to produce a contract known as the artist s reserved rights transfer and sale agreement. The artists reserved rights transfer and sale agreement wikipedia. But recently there has been a resurgence in the analysis of how the use of the contractual agreement impacts the practical, historical, and theoretical fields of art. In the event that the artist forms a corporation during the term hereof for the purpose of furnishing and exploiting the artist s artistic talents, the artist agrees that said corporation shall offer to enter into a management contract with the manager identical in all respects to this agreement except as to the parties thereto. Attention was also drawn the publication of siegelaub s artist right and transfer of sales agreement, in april 1971. In the event that the artist forms a corporation during the term hereof for the purpose of furnishing and exploiting the artists artistic talents, the artist agrees that said corporation shall offer to enter into a management contract with the manager identical in all respects to. No amendment or modification of this contract shall be binding unless confirmed in writing by both parties.
In early 1971, a year before he abandoned the art world, the american art dealer and independent curator seth siegelaub 194120 published the artists reserved rights transfer and sale agreement arrtsa in new york. The services to be provided by the artist under this contract must be coordinated and integrated into the project. Art in the age of contractual negotiation by christopher g. Siegelaub the artists reserved rights transfer and sale. Weiner began exhibiting at the seth siegelaub contemporary art gallery in new york city in 1964. Seth siegelaub the artists reserved rights transfer and sale agreement, 1971 developed through conversations with members of the art world and written with the help of lawyer robert projansky in 1971, seth siegelaubs artists reserved rights transfer and sale agreement was designed to safeguard the economic interests of artists.
Textiles collected by seth siegelaub for the centre for social research on old textiles, raven row, 1 march 6 may 2012, london 2012. This problem of naming has left the historical record fragmented for reasons that disclose the documents ultimate click to view larger figure 1 seth siegelaub and robert projansky, the. Seth siegelaub is born in the bronx, new york, the first of four children. In 1968, for an outofstate exhibition organized by siegelaub that also included works by carl andre and robert barry, weiner installed what he saw as an unobtrusive work titled hay, mesh, string in a. A project initiated by siegelaub with lawyer robert projanksy that entailed the organization, preparation, and publication of an artists sale contract setting forth and protecting the artists moral and economic rights, including their entitlement to fifteen percent of any profits made on the resale of their work. From 1996 to 2005 eichhorn conducted interviews with artists, art dealers, and the authors of the artists reserved rights transfer and sale agreement. In the event of a breach of contract by the promoter with respect to the provisions in. Maria eichhorn the artists contract interviews with arl andre, daniel buren, paula ooper, hans haacke, jenny holzer, adrian piper, robert projansky, robert ryman, seth siegelaub, john weber, lawrence weiner, jackie winsor edited by gerti fietzek. The artist s reserved rights transfer and sale agreement, according to siegelaub, defined and attempted to protect the rights and interests of the artist as their work circulated within the art. Sample performance agreement while this contract could be used for actual business purposes, it may not suit your situation and the laws of your state. Eichhorn, maria, the artists contract, walther konig, cologne 2009 the stuff that matters. If published, the creation date may be found in the first few pages of the work in which it first appeared.
In the seminal artists reserved rights, transfer and sale agreement, drafted in 1971 with the lawyer, bob projansky, the legendary conceptual art dealer and curator, seth siegelaub created a model contract for artists to protect their economic and authorial rights when selling their work 1. It addresses the important legal issues in all stages of the music industry in the most practical way possible, by providing complete contracts and clearly explaining alternative contract language from both sides the artist and the businesses the artist deals with. Seth siegelaubs disembodied voice echoes through the futuristically decorated, cementfloored chamber of the time capsule lounge, part of site s march 2012 timelapse exhibition. Gallery will exert all reasonable efforts to close sales of consigned or represented artwork. Seth siegelaubs the artists reserved rights transfer and sale agreement. The balance of payment is due upon satisfactory completion and delivery of the artwork described above. Seth siegelaub and robert projansky, created the artists contract, a. Seth siegelaub papersin the museum of modern art archives.
Jun 15, 20 artist maria eichhorn publishes the artist s contract. An artist management contract can be defined as a contract between an artist and a manager to avail management services. Interviews with carl andre, daniel buren, paula cooper, hans haacke, jenny holzer, adrian piper, robert projansky, robert ryman, seth siegelaub, john weber, lawrence weiner, jackie winsor, discussing the impact of the artist s reserved rights transfer and sale agreement. Contracts are agreements that are legally bound and give details of the deal between the parties involved and also, the details of all the parties involved should be mentioned in the sample artist contract, hence making it easier to figure out who does what.
An artists union forms in boston and remains active until 1979. Why the sudden interest in the written agreement, and specifically, the artists rights transfer agreement drafted by seth siegelaub and robert projansky. Unsurprisingly, as a practical matter, the artists contract was not very successful. Its stated aim was to change the power relations on. Seth siegelaub contemporary art gallery art gallery, new. This contract, created 1971 by bob projansky and seth siegelaub, was designed to become a standard artist agreement form to be used and be reproduced freely. The artist s reserved rights transfer and sale agreement, according to siegelaub, defined and attempted to protect the rights and interests of. The amended artists reserved rights transfer and sale. Adrian piper and hans haacke successfully used a version of the artist s reserved rights transfer and sale agreement coauthored by exhibition organizer and curator seth siegelaub and attorney robert projansky in 1971. Other articles where seth siegelaub contemporary art gallery is discussed. The artists contract from the contract of aesthetics to.
Over the artists reserved rights transfer and sale agreement valt nog heel wat te zeggen. Curator, writer and dealer seth siegelaub 194120 is legendary for his promotion of conceptual art in new york in the 1960s and 70s. A project initiated by siegelaub with lawyer robert projanksy that entailed the organization, preparation, and publication of an artist s sale contract setting forth and protecting the artist s moral and economic rights, including their entitlement to fifteen percent of any profits made on the resale of their work. Raised in an intellectually curious lower middle class family. The artists reserved rights transfer and sale agreement. This activity led to siegelaub s increasing involvement in the political aspects of art and, in 1971, he collaborated with lawyer robert projansky to produced the artist s reserved rights transfer and sale agreement, also known as the artists contract, which defined and attempted to protect the rights and interests of artists as their work. Artist in good faith believes necessary to create the work. This is a great book, especially for performing artists. Contracts are agreements that are legally bound and give details of the deal between the parties involved and also, the details of all the parties involved should be mentioned in the sample artist contract, hence making it. In 1971 siegelaub created the artists reserved rights transfer and sale agreement, also referred to as the artists contract. Siegelaub and projansky further stipulated that the artists contract should be legally. The artists contract from the contract of aesthetics to the.