Artists, Galleries and the Market: Historical Economic and Legal Aspects of Artist-Dealer Relationships

Jeffrey S. Moorad Sports Law Journal, Dec 2001

By Mark A. Reutter, Published on 01/01/01

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Artists, Galleries and the Market: Historical Economic and Legal Aspects of Artist-Dealer Relationships

Jeffrey S. Moorad Sports Law Journal Artists, Galleries and the Market: Historical Economic and Legal Aspects of Artist-Dealer Relationships Mark A. Reutter 0 1 0 Thi s Article is brought to you for free and open access by Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Jeffrey S. Moorad Sports Law Journal by an authorized editor of Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law Digital Repository. For more information , please contact 1 Mark A. Reutter, Artists, Galleries and the Market: Historical Economic and Legal Aspects of Artist-Dealer Relationships , 8 Jeffrey S. Moorad Sports L.J. 99 (2001). Available at: Part of the Entertainment; Arts; and Sports Law Commons - Article MARK A. REUTTER** I. INTRODUCTION Visual art is not only cultural property, but it is also the merchandise of the art market. The art market has grown to such an importance that increasingly it influences artistic behavior and judgments about art by virtue of its inherent forces. Thus, it is not surprising that art is no longer the research field of the art historians and critics only. Art trade has also become a subject of market reports, economic analysis and legal considerations. Cultural Economics and Art Law have joined Art History. The interdependence of these fields was the guideline for the following Article about various aspects of the primary art market and the artist-dealer relationship. Aspects of the development of the art trade through dealers in an historical point of view, the economic situation of the artist vis-a-vis to his dealer in the modern art market, and legal particularities of the artist-dealer relationship are considered. II. THE VISUAL ARTIST AND THE ART TRADE HISTORICAL OUTLINES For the visual artist, meaning and importance of the art trade changed throughout history, as the arts, society and the artist's role in society developed. Presently, the importance and economic necessity of the art trade for an artist is closely related to his or her recognized position as a free and creative artist. This position is mostly taken for granted today. Such was not the case during ear* This Article has been edited to the fullest extent possible by the staff of the Villanova Sports & EntertainmentLaw JournaL The author's use of sources written in foreign languages, however, prevented the staff from being able to confirm much of the information relied on by the author. All foreign sources are on file with the author. ** Attorney, Walder, Wyss & Partners, Zfirich, Switzerland. University of Zfirich, Switzerland, Dr. iur; Harvard Law School, L.L.M. This Article is dedicated to Franz Larese and Jfirg Janett, the founders of the Erker Gallery in St. Gallen, Switzerland. (99) lier times. The artist's role and position in society and his or her reputation as creator had to develop as much as the art trade had to evolve over the course of the centuries. The history of the art trade is also the story of the artists' emancipation. A. Antiques Certainly, there has been trade in art ever since art existed. Good examples are given by ancient cultures that were particularly rich in art. A considerable part of the Phoenicians' trade was their trade in art. Ancient Rome imported large amounts of Greek art. In Imperial Rome auction sales were held, and it is well known in which quarters art dealers carried on their trade.1 During these times, however, the focus was on the trade in art works, and the artist behind the works was secondary. Only few references of the Antiques report about the artists themselves, their way of producing and their living. Even the names of most antique artists are not known.2 Such anonymity of the visual artists themselves can be explained by their inferior social position at those early times. This anonymity is in contrast to the high reputation enjoyed by writers and poets in the Antiques. A visual artist was viewed as a simple workman. Seneca expressed exemplary the prevailing disparaging opinion about visual artists. 3 He stated in his letters that he never would consider painters and sculptors as liberal artists. He instead compared them to athletes and other "servants of luxury." Seneca reasoned that only together with cooks, barbers, perfumers and other entertainers, could painters and sculptors belong to the liberal arts. Another important feature of these times was the lack of any importance of authorship. This again distinguished the visual artist from the writer or the performing artist. Visual art was not appreciated for being an expression of original authorship. Authenticity was of no importance. A good copy of a work of art had the same value as the original. In Rome, art was created by artist-slaves and by few free artists. Both the artist-slaves and the free artists were forced to work under the guidance of other people, mostly in the service of the emperors and the nobles. The person of the artist had to sta (...truncated)


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Mark A. Reutter. Artists, Galleries and the Market: Historical Economic and Legal Aspects of Artist-Dealer Relationships, Jeffrey S. Moorad Sports Law Journal, 2001, Volume 8, Issue 1,