Irish Artists Resale Cut

Iirish artists will be entitled to a cut from resales of their work from next January. Legislation introduced in the autumn will give painters and sculptors at least 4% of the hammer price of works worth €3,000 plus. But auctioneers and gallery owners are warning that the introduction of droit de suite will damage the art market, which is worth about €20m a year, and lead to Irish paintings being sold in America and Switzerland where there is no resale levy. Among the beneficiaries should be the estate of Roderic O’Conor - this month, Sotheby’s sold his La Lisiere du Bois for a record €1.29m. Another big beneficiary will be le Brocquy, whose prices regularly break the €1m barrier. For the full story - click the title Irish Art