A couple days ago, I came across a link to the Kamm Teapot
Foundation, which boasts 17,000 objects in the collection. It is a
very impressive collection (the little bit of it I saw on line) and I
started thinking “These folks need one of my teapots!”
Went to page two of metal teapots and – whoa!!! They HAVE one of my
teapots. You need to understand, I have made only a very few
teapots, each one unique and a great deal of work, so I was
surprised, and very pleased to see it there. It was sold by Mobilia
Gallery in Cambridge MA, and they never told me who bought it.
Noel, the teapot is quirky, fun and delightful! The entire
collection is very interesting and shows a wide variety of
techniques, materials andthought processes.
It’s wonderful that your teapot is part of this collection.
They are also posting their collection on Facebook for more
visibility. Redirecting...
It seems likely that many Orchid Ganoksin readers have metalwork in
the collection, but your comment also raises a serious issue.
When your work is sold, it should be an expectation from the artist
that you are informed about who buys your work.
The Consignment Contract in the Professional Guidelines states:
“Accounting for one-of-a-kind Artwork. For one-of-a-kind artwork
with a retail price of $500 or more, the gallery will furnish the
name, mailing address, and telephone number of the client / collector
who purchases the artwork. Artist agrees not to contact the client
for the purpose of selling artwork directly to the client and the
gallery will be informed or receive a copy of any communication
between artist and client that relates to this artwork as long as the
contract remains in effect.”
The objective is to help artists keep track of the provenance for
their work.
The time has passed where artists and makers can depend on galleries
to be their patron and advocate. If a gallery closes the location of
your work will be lost forever.
The time has come for artists and makers to be better advocates for
their work. This includes knowing who purchases important work and
this should be written into your contract.