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DACS Annual Review 2022 - £16.4 million paid to over 82,000 artists and estates in 2022

DACS has published its latest Annual Review which reveals that 82,000 artists and estates received £16.4 million in royalties through our services in 2022. 

DACS exists to advocate and secure income for visual artists and estates. Royalties are essential for supporting artists to pursue their work and helping estates to safeguard artists’ legacies.

Key highlights

£10.4 million paid in Artist Resale Right royalties to artists. Since the Right passed into law in the UK in 2006, DACS has now secured a total of £120 million in royalties for over 6,000 artists and estates.

£1.4 million paid to artists and estates through licensing. We worked with over 700 customers and put in place 1800 licences on behalf of our members. This included work with high-profile brands including Christopher Farr, Deutsche Bank AG, Faber & Faber, Liberty London, NET-A-PORTER, Netflix, Polaroid, Royal Opera House, Snapchat, Turner Contemporary, Warner Music UK and White Cube

Artists and estates received a share of £4.6 million in Payback royalties. The scheme provides royalties for artists throughout their career and, since its founding in 1999, DACS has paid out over £70 million in Payback royalties.

DACS advocates for the rights of visual artists and artists’ estates across the UK, collaborating with organisations across the sector to strengthen our campaigns and maximise our impact.

Through our work on the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Visual Arts, our engagement with white papers and consultations, and our policy reports, we have ensured government hears the voice of artists and estates. We have helped to shape government policy on AI regulation and copyright law, and worked hard to make sure artists can thrive amid rapid technological advances. We have also advocated for innovative solutions to support artists going forward, campaigning for the Smart Fund that could generate £280 million a year for creators, performers, and communities.

Christian Zimmermann
Chief Executive

I know I speak on behalf of all the board when I say we are incredibly proud to work on behalf of our members. In our collective mission, to transform the financial landscape for visual artists, DACS remains resolute, and we are committed to advocating for and protecting artists’ rights. Over the coming year, we look forward to working with even more artists and estates and it is a privilege to support them in every step of their journey.

Margaret Heffernan
DACS Chair

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