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DACS celebrates 15 years of the Artist’s Resale Right

Since 2006, the Artist’s Resale Right has entitled visual artists to royalties from the continued market success of their work.

Artists receive Resale Right royalties when their work is resold by a gallery, art dealer or an auction house, which provides them with a vital source of income. Since the implementation of the Artist’s Resale Right in UK law, DACS are proud to have paid out over £95 million to 5,500 artists and estates.

Artists use this money to cover living expenses, costs of materials and studio space – which helps them to continue making work. Estates can use the money for cataloguing, archiving and restoration – ensuring British art preserved for future generations. When artists keep creating, the creative economy keeps booming.

In June 2019, we launched the Fair Share for Artists campaign to safeguard this crucial source of income for UK artists, with support from artists including Chila Kumari Burman, Mark Titchner and Jeremy Deller.

Last month it was announced that the Artist’s Resale Right is part of the UK-EU Brexit trade agreement, securing access to these royalties for artists for years to come.

DACS is tremendously proud to have paid out over £95 million pounds in Resale Right royalties to 5,500 artists and estates since 2006. 

The Artist’s Resale Right provides artists with much needed income and an ongoing stake in their work. In the current climate as artists face the myriad challenges of the pandemic, many without the security of government support, that is more important than ever!

Gilane Tawadros
Chief Executive at DACS

Pre-covid, the creative industries contributed over £100 billion to the UK economy. Despite their role in that success, we know that many visual artists are struggling with projects stalled indefinitely and huge hits to their income. 

Like all other industries, it is vital that artists are paid for their work and for the increased value that their work gathers. This is an essential part of making it possible for artists to pursue the livelihoods that make such a contribution to all our lives.

Margaret Heffernan
Chair of the DACS Board

Are you an artist or the beneficiary of an artist whose work has sold on the art market for €1,000 or more? If so, you may be entitled to the Artist’s resale right royalty. Take a look at the links below for more information:

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