The measures are due to come into force throughout the EU on 1st
January 2006.
At present in the UK, once an artist has sold his work he
receives no further payment for it, even though it may be resold
many times in the future for greater sums of money. In France and
many other European countries, artists are paid a percentage of the
resale proceeds under a "Droit de Suite" for as long as copyright
protects the work – up to 70 years after the death of the
artist.
A European Directive, approved in 2001 after lengthy
negotiations, seeks to harmonise the position.
The Directive "on the resale right for the benefit of the author
of an original work of art" will benefit producers of paintings,
photographs, sculptures and other unique works of art. It provides
that only works with a value of over €3,000 (£2,070) will be
subject to the Directive, and sets out a sliding scale of royalty
payments, with the maximum payment for the resale of a single work
of art set at €12,500 (£8,620).
While it will make little difference to European countries that
already have remuneration schemes for artists, the Directive is
likely to have a significant impact on the UK, Austria and Ireland,
where no such right has previously existed.
The UK government has been particularly concerned to ensure that
any negative effects on the strong UK art market are kept to an
absolute minimum.
"Britain has an art-trading tradition which is the envy of the
world. We also have world-class artisans who deserve fair reward
for their creativity," said Peter Lawrence, Director of
Intellectual Property & Innovation at the Patent Office. "This
new 'Artists Resale Right' must balance the needs of artists with
the concerns of the art trade, and that is why its implementation
must be done transparently and sensitively."
The Patent Office has therefore launched a consultation, due to
run until 16th May, which seeks views on the best way to implement
the Directive.
The government hopes to have implementing regulations ready by
the autumn.
