How much do they cost?
Galleries charge retail fee of $50 as an add-on fee for the Certificate that they obtain and deliver to the buyer. The Gallery cost is $25, leaving a $25 profit. They can choose to pass on the cost of $25 with no mark-up, but they do require a little time to input the info and print out the COO, so a respectable mark-up is normal. Each COO will be paid for as they are issued, unless prior credit arrangements are secured. If the COO is already in place by the artist, before consignment; and upon sale, the new collector information is added to the chain of ownership, a new revised COO must be obtained by the Gallery Cost of $25.
Artists get a special price, if they are the originators of the work. $15 each or TEN FOR $100 for artists only. These can be purchased in advance of any consignment to a gallery, to assure they are in place and one copy attached to the back. If possible, the Gallery Consignment information should be submitted at the time of purchase, but not necessary, if the artist does not yet know where the work will be consigned.
It is always a positive sign to the consignment gallery that the artist has taken the trouble to have the COO in place, before consignment.
The fee for a Certificate of Origin for an Individual Collector is $50.
The fee for the original artist to have ArtOwnership.com to issue a notice of SCAR to a gallery or collector is free for the Artist. No charge! An email and phone calls will be made to the offending party to aid in recovery of the outstanding funds to be sent to the artist. If a gallery has a history of having to be notified of SCARS, the gallery tardiness will be explained to the artist, if known in advance. Artists need to know how reputable a gallery is with prompt payment and communication back to the artist.
It serves as a very good document to track the ownership of a piece of art. Access to the information about a particular piece attests to its true history. There are many details about a piece that the Certificate provides for the future.
Example:
1. The signature placement can help identify the piece.
2. It is always helpful to know as much as possible about the history of a piece and who might, in the future, know of similar pieces available. Artists, Galleries and Collectors have expressed the need for the Certificate of Origin.
The data is stored in many separate data files. It would be impossible for anyone to 'hack in' and retrieve or alter the data. The exact sequence, timing of retrievals and different data storage files make this so secure. Only ArtOwnership.com can manually access the data.
Embedded, are registered watermarks that only we can access and where these appear on the document. We update and change them regularly, making them 'time sensitiive'.
A close up picture of the signature, a date created, a Certificate of Origin attached to the back of the piece...these all make a fairly clear trail of facts that assure a piece is genuine.
Does ArtOwnership guaranty or warrant that an Artist has been paid?
No. This is not 'insurance', 'warranty' or a 'guaranty' to make the buyer or gallery pay the artist for any disputed sale of a piece of art.
If the Artist is not paid and he or she requests a SCAR be issued, we email the Collector or Gallery, that there is a dispute. We do not guaranty that this action will result in the Artist or Gallery receiving payment, but it has been our experience that this advocacy does help.
More about this can be read on the Artist page concerning a S.C.A.R. (Simple Collection Action Request).
If you are an Artist and sell work through a Gallery, make sure you understand the business relationship with the Gallery in order to get paid promptly. That relationship is between you and the Gallery.
What if the Gallery does not want to include specific information about the buyer to the artist?
Artists should never contact the buyer, unless they have permission from the Gallery. It is ethical to allow the Gallery to do what they do best, and for the Gallery to act as the intermediary between the Artist and the buyer. If the artist should contact us to find out the buyer information, we will email the gallery first to obtain permission.
What about getting a copyright?
The US Copyright office can help. http://www.copyright.gov/
A Certificate of Origin does not imply that anyone owns the rights to copy the work or to makes prints of it. The rights to that are separate intellectual property issues, and can be addressed by copyright rules and an attorney. A Certificate of Origin is a record of who has recorded the trail of ownership.
What about prints and multiple prints?
A very useful article by Brooke Oliver is available:
www.osrfirm.com/bios/pubs/certs_of_authent2004BO.pdf
This article addresses many of the issues with prints and is worth reading. It also addresses some of the various state's rules and regulations on art work sales. It is reasonably thorough, but well worth reading.
What about Intellectual Property Rights of the art work?
The Certificate of Origin does not give or deny any rights to use the art work in any way. This is a matter between the Gallery and the Artist and should be addressed separately.
How do I contact you?
Simple. On the front page there is a Contact US button.
or simply click here: Accountmanager@artownership.com
