Warning to protect your Moral Rights

Many of you will know that Telstra are having Michael‟s work in their corporate office removed. An image of the work before removal can be seen at:
www.newspix.com.au/Packages/ViewImage.aspx?id=1178853
The Telstra work will be acquired by Grollo Australia and will be moved into storage on Dec. 5-6th. We do not know where it will go in the longer term and this will be worked out early next year. A good result considering.
The Telstra work's removal has highlighted a number of issues, partly because it was so integrated with the building that moving it is a major operation. It also pointed out the difficulties of dealing with an owner of a work who decided to get rid of the work and did not consult with the artist initially at the time of developing its plans. This has led to a very fraught situation where time was very short, the client was impatient, and the client was unwilling to do the removal in a way which would impact on the work as little as possible. Luckily a new owner has taken over the work and is removing it sympathetically.
Most situations are not quite so complicated, but artists need to be aware of their continuing rights over a work after they have sold it or delivered a commission.
The notion of moral rights was put into Australian law in 2000. This followed a long process of development and lobbying by many people and organisations, esp. NAVA and Artslaw. However, I can claim having started it when I introduced it to the Visual Arts Board in 1977-78 as a result of a few artists, including me, having been involved in a rather shonky gallery before this.
Moral rights are those rights which protect an artist's work and reputation. They are designed to make the public aware of the particular nature of art and to define the way art should be treated.
My recent episode with Telstra involved my art work being put in danger of being mutilated or destroyed, and I was forced to engage a specialist solicitor to help me fight Telstra. We succeeded and the work will now be removed properly and stored until a new venue can be found.

In another case, in Yarrawonga, the expression of interest in Yarrawonga was found at the last moment to have a clause which required the sculptor to pass over all rights in the work- ownership, copyright and to waive moral rights. I was told by the council officer that this was so they had the right to destroy the work in the future if they wanted to.
Ownership is normally passed over when a work is bought or commissioned. Transfer of copyright normally requires a separate agreement, and should not be done without very careful consideration. Waiving of moral rights is almost never done and should be avoided at all costs. It means that the owner can do anything with the work without the artist's control.

Michael Meszaros