The Australian Indigenous Art Trade Association
The Australian Indigenous Art Trade Association (Art.Trade)
is the national organisation for persons and organisations
experienced in the business of indigenous art. The Association
was established in 1998.
Art Trade News
The Board of Art.Trade has been active "behind
the scenes" over the last nine months, contributing
to the development of a national code of ethical practice,
making submissions to the Senate Committee investigating
the Australian Indigenous Visual Arts and Craft industry
and providing information to the goverment about the Aboriginal art market.
The ArtTrade Annual General Meeting (AGM) for 2008 was held
in Darwin on Friday 15 August 2008. In addition to the
formal requirements of an AGM, members heard reports on the resale royalty and the proposed commercial code of conduct and
discussed the implications of other important developments
in the Indigenous art market.
Art.Trade has represented its Members through the Reference
Group for the Indigenous
Australian Art Commercial Code of Conduct (see next
item). Development of the Code was strongly endorsed
by the Senate Committee for Industry wide adoption.
For an update on activities, read the latest
ArtTrade Newsletter (July 2008).
Code of Ethical Conduct for Indigenous Art
Art.Trade has been involved in the drafting of the
Indigenous Australian Art Commercial Code of Conduct.
The project is funded by the Australia Council and is
being directed by the National Association for the Visual
Arts (NAVA), Desart and the Association of Northern
Kimberley and Arnhem Aboriginal Artists (ANKAAA).
The Code is intended to guide the Indigenous art industry
in its commercial practice, covering industry issues
relating to the production and sale of Indigenous artwork
and intellectual property uses, for example when applied
to merchandising and licensing agreements.
Art.Trade has been a member of the Reference Group for the
process (now concluded). Our main comments were to stress the importance
of buyers in the chain from artists to buyers, the role
of ethical galleries and dealers and a need for the
code to apply to all parts of the industry (with different
sections tailored to different participants). We have
of course pointed to our own Code of Ethics - but the
draft Commercial Code of Conduct goes into considerably
more detail and covers all elements of the market.
Senate Committee Inquiry into Indigenous Visual Arts
The Senate
Committee started work in October 2006 and tabled
its report on 20 June 2007. The Committee received nearly
90 submissions and held seven sessions of public hearings.
The submissions and transcripts of the hearings make
interesting reading and contain lots of useful information
about the state and issues facing the indigenous art
market today. Art.Trade contributed to the work of the
Committee by making a formal
submission and also by providing informal comments
to the staff of the inquiry.
The Commonwealth Government responded to the Committee's report in August 2008. The response is available online.
Questions to Ask when Buying Aboriginal Art
We are often asked about the issues arising
for both purchasers and sellers when buying Aboriginal
art. Members of Art.Trade are bound by the Code
of Ethics of the Association and these provide guidance
for sellers of art. In addition to the ethics of selling,
there are issues to do with authenticity of the work,
ethical dealing and fairness.
To help respond to these issues, Art.Trade
has developed a list of Questions
to Ask When Buying Aboriginal Art. We hope you find
these useful.
Donation to Aboriginal Benefits Foundation
Following the success of previous fund-raising
auctions, the Indigenous Art Trade Association contributed
$5000 in 2005 and 2006 to the Aboriginal Benefits
Foundation and then $6500 in 2007.
The Aboriginal Benefits Foundation has been established
to finance health, education and development projects
in Aboriginal communities.
The establishment of the Foundation was a long cherished
aim of successive Art Trade boards. Its establishment
has been made possible by the generosity of Lawson Menzies
auction house which donates 2% of the hammer price on
all Aboriginal artworks sold to this worthy cause.
The Foundation was established in 2004 by a group of
individuals involved in Indigenous art and culture to
create an organisation with the objective of benefiting
the well being of Aboriginal Australians. To assist
in this aim the Foundation accepts moneys as direct
donations, as proceeds in full or in part from the sale
of art works, as gifts in kind, and as bequests and
in various other ways. The Foundation has been gazetted
by the Federal Government as a tax deductible charity.
For information about applying for a grant from the
Foundation, click here
.
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