Damn Economy...

[jim kitchen]

I discovered that a gallery which represents my work, and their associated framing company which I cannot not name, went into receivership on the first Tuesday of the New Year...

I went to the gallery to review my inventory at the beginning of the week, because I wanted to identify whether I could submit a few images to the show south of the border, mentioned earlier on this site, since the gallery, and the framing house always managed my image distribution. Unfortunately and to my surprise, a receivership notice was hanging on the front door, complete with the proper contact information.

The gallery and the framing shop have several of my framed images and other signed mounted pieces. I contacted the receiver immediately, and the receiver indicated that I cannot retrieve any of my inventory until the gallery's inventory is properly identified, and where my proof of ownership must be clearly established. My proof of ownership means that I must prove that I own the images outright, which I do, but the receiver's paperwork process will take a while to complete and validate my ownership. I can only imagine the numerous complications the other artists represented by the gallery must be going through, since they do not live in this city, and they are obligated to communicate with the receiver via phone calls, and an obvious continuous volley of emails.

Time will pass, and I will eventually retrieve my finished work by being patient, but I cannot access, assess, or remove my inventory until I am cleared to do so by the receiver. My present concern happens to be whether my inventory was intact prior to the receivership notice, but the qualified and experienced receiver assures me that this should not be a concern, and if it becomes a concern, the issue will be handled then. I know and trust the staff completely, so I should not be concerned, if an irregularity does surface. Receiverships can be processed efficiently, but complicated receiverships, such as the size and nature of this establishment's client base, will positively stress test the receiver going forward.

What a frigging pain in the ass this week happens to be... :(

jim k

[Kirk Gittings]

Good luck. Stay on it.

This has happened to me twice, once in a gallery in Amarillo and once in Santa Fe. Except I didn't hear about it for a about a year. The upshot was that I never saw my prints again and received no compensation. I heard, years later, that some of my prints were being sold at the flea market in Santa Fe, but I could never pin this down. This would have been in the late 70's.

[Brian_A]

Mr. K.,

Sorry to hear that your new year is starting off so badly. I hope it works out for you and doesn't cause you much stress. I had a situation like Kirk's and haven't seen any money nor can I get ahold of the former gallery owner. Of course, not in the 70's and never heard of them being sold at a flea market, though :) Anyway, I hope you get your prints back soon!

-B

[jim kitchen]

Dear Kirk,

That is unsettling too...

The value, safety, the locked inventory, and the immediate retrieval of my inventory happen to be my main concerns, going forward. I asked the receiver, what procedures they might have in place to prevent an individual from identifying any image as theirs, and whether they have a distributed procedure to qualify the item's ownership with the individual.

They could not immediately answer that question, because they did not have the procedure available for distribution, but they did identify that an individual or group must provide paid proof of ownership, which will be the only valid solution. I am also concerned about the time-line my images may reside within the buildings, or within another interim storage area during this exercise, and whether there happens to be any potential for my finished images to be mishandled during any transfer or subsequent storage event.

And, I was having such a nice day...


jim k

[Greg Miller]

Sorry to hear that. It is good practice to always have a transfer document, signed by you and the gallery agent, that lists the pieces you are transferring to them, their value, and the details about ownership. That helps prove ownership and value in cases like this.

I hope things work out and you get your work back quickly and unharmed.

[Bill_1856]

I hope your problem is resolved quickly.
You are not alone -- I believe that it was Robert Rauchenberg who said that he should be know as "The Mother of Modern Art" because he had been f***ed by every gallery in New York.

[jim kitchen]

Dear Greg,

I do have a transfer document, but the process will take time to validate... :)

Thanks for mentioning that, in case others do not.

jim k

[jim kitchen]

Dear Bill,

You just put a smile on my face. I like that quote... :)

Thank you.

jim k

[Greg Miller]

Dear Bill,

You just put a smile on my face. I like that quote... :)

Thank you.

jim k

That's good to hear (I figured you probably did). It is s PITA but worth the trouble. Best of luck with it.

[Mike1234]

I discovered that a gallery which represents my work, and their associated framing company which I cannot not name, went into receivership on the first Tuesday of the New Year...

I went to the gallery to review my inventory at the beginning of the week, because I wanted to identify whether I could submit a few images to the show south of the border, mentioned earlier on this site, since the gallery, and the framing house always managed my image distribution. Unfortunately and to my surprise, a receivership notice was hanging on the front door, complete with the proper contact information.

The gallery and the framing shop have several of my framed images and other signed mounted pieces. I contacted the receiver immediately, and the receiver indicated that I cannot retrieve any of my inventory until the gallery's inventory is properly identified, and where my proof of ownership must be clearly established. My proof of ownership means that I must prove that I own the images outright, which I do, but the receiver's paperwork process will take a while to complete and validate my ownership. I can only imagine the numerous complications the other artists represented by the gallery must be going through, since they do not live in this city, and they are obligated to communicate with the receiver via phone calls, and an obvious continuous volley of emails.

Time will pass, and I will eventually retrieve my finished work by being patient, but I cannot access, assess, or remove my inventory until I am cleared to do so by the receiver. My present concern happens to be whether my inventory was intact prior to the receivership notice, but the qualified and experienced receiver assures me that this should not be a concern, and if it becomes a concern, the issue will be handled then. I know and trust the staff completely, so I should not be concerned, if an irregularity does surface. Receiverships can be processed efficiently, but complicated receiverships, such as the size and nature of this establishment's client base, will positively stress test the receiver going forward.

What a frigging pain in the ass this week happens to be... :(

jim k

Unfortunately, there is no shortage of greedy bastard dishonest assholes in this world. Good luck and BE PERSISTENT, ON TIME, and ACCURATE!!

[Bob Salomon]

We had a photographer who had a very complete Linhof GTL 810 outfit with conversion backs and a lot of lenses. The photographer sent the camera (this is 13 or more years ago) to his camera store so that they could send it on for service. While the camera system was at the dealers the dealer declared bankruptcy and went into liquidation. Even though we went with the photographer's attorney to Federal Court with copies of our paperwork establishing that we sold the system to the dealer and the attorney had the paperwork establishing when and how much the dealer sold it to the photographer and even though we both had copies of paperwork establishing that the camera sysytem was being returned for service the court decided that the system was part of the assets of the dealer and were liquidated at a fraction of their value and the photographer was out his system.

[Vick Vickery]

Jim, I may be a horrible pessimist, but if you value your work highly in both property rights and cash value, I would waste no time in having an attorney file a claim against the property/receiver and include an expectation of reimbursment for any potential damages which may be done to your property due to mishandling or poor storage conditions. Sometimes you gotta get peoples attention.

I am not an attorney and this post is not meant as legal advice.

[bvstaples]

Jim, I may be a horrible pessimist, but if you value your work highly in both property rights and cash value, I would waste no time in having an attorney file a claim against the property/receiver and include an expectation of reimbursment for any potential damages which may be done to your property due to mishandling or poor storage conditions.

I would tend to agree. Being a non-legal type going against the court, the gallery, and the other litany of lawyers puts you at a disadvantage. Get yourself some representation, and specifically detail all you need to be satisfied, including retribution for damages, and be sure to include legal fees in any settlement.

Brian

[darr]

We had a photographer who had a very complete Linhof GTL 810 outfit with conversion backs and a lot of lenses. The photographer sent the camera (this is 13 or more years ago) to his camera store so that they could send it on for service. While the camera system was at the dealers the dealer declared bankruptcy and went into liquidation. Even though we went with the photographer's attorney to Federal Court with copies of our paperwork establishing that we sold the system to the dealer and the attorney had the paperwork establishing when and how much the dealer sold it to the photographer and even though we both had copies of paperwork establishing that the camera sysytem was being returned for service the court decided that the system was part of the assets of the dealer and were liquidated at a fraction of their value and the photographer was out his system.

Oh my gosh!! :eek:
That is a very sad story. I would be so mad if that happened to me. :mad:

[Mike1234]

Sadly, our legal system caters to the wealthy. Again... good luck and don't give up.

[pocketfulladoubles]

I'm not an attorney either, but whenever I have nonsense like this come my way, I'm sure to make my first move a notarized certified letter.

[Ron McElroy]

Jim
I wish you great luck in retrieving your work. Hopefully Canadian law is different that here in the US. My wife is a painter and went through this several years ago when a gallery closed. We didn't get anything back.

[jim kitchen]

Gentlemen,

I will have better information next week, once I talk about this issue with my Corporate Lawyer, and whether my retrieval rights do exist...

jim k

[Monty McCutchen]

Good luck Jim. Your imagery is worth fighting for,

Monty

[Brian Ellis]

Sorry to hear of this. At least you have some chance of getting your work back. I had some photographs with a gallery in Tampa. They just closed up shop one day and took my photographs (and presumably those of the other photographers they represented) with them. Like Kirk, I didn't realize they had closed until quite a while later when it was too late to bother trying to track them down.

[jim kitchen]

The gallery was a high profile gallery, with excellent clients and very excellent artists, where the gallery's represented artists came from around the globe. The gallery even had an Indian Motorcycle that an artist decorated with jewels, gold foil, et al. It was a very fascinating and admirable piece. I was always impressed by the artistic quality within the gallery and the obvious talents shown by the represented artists. The gallery's presentation of any piece of art was impeccable...

Photographic artwork was an extremely small venue within their realm of existing galleries around the country, almost non existent, especially when you consider the scope of art the gallery represented. Unfortunately, my framed images were sidelined to the framing gallery for a short time period, because the framing material warped, and the gallery's framing facility replaced all the defective material, during 2009. The material was either defective upon arrival and, or it could not adjust effectively to the dry Alberta climate. A flaw non the less that was addressed properly by the owners of the gallery and the framing facility, during the year.

Again, I can only imagine the effect this closure will have upon all the represented artists, and I do believe that any gallery should feel this effect when the economy happens to be this soft, and I believe that the first items to be targeted may well be any esoteric piece of art that does not add value to anyone's portfolio, especially when folks must provide for their families first, compared to a piece of art, no matter what the artwork's perceived value happens to be.

Exercises such as this can lead to an artist's inventory being crippled and unretrievable, which could break any artist's income cycle quickly, especially when a sale happens to be on the table, and the artwork is not deliverable. This issue should alert any artist to re-evaluate their own current situation, especially when their artwork may be located, and unknowingly assigned within an economically fragile gallery.

jim k

[jim kitchen]

Dear Dakotah,

Yes it is very true that open spaces exist here, but I do live North of the 49th... :)

I have several other stories too, that I could elaborate on that pertain to other galleries I dealt within the past, but remembering those situations tends to make my blood boil too quickly, and incessantly. Unfortunately, I am very quick to react, and I am very intolerant to any ineffectual peer, whether they tend to pretentious intellectuals that work in my field, or critics that pretend to be your equal without proof.

I am grateful that gun laws exist in Canada...

I do find though, that most galleries have operated effectively, and they try to present your work in a good light, for lack of better words, but when economics interferes with a normal gallery business practice, trouble quickly follows.

jim k

[Merg Ross]

Dear Jim,

I sincerely hope that this situation can be resolved to your satisfaction in a timely manner. There are always risks involved in a gallery relationship; perhaps your past gains have more than offset your present perceived loss.

In any event, dedicate your best efforts and time to new work; I am sure you will soon have another stunning portfolio!

All best,
Merg

[jim kitchen]

Dear Merg,

What you say is absolutely true about the gains obtained in any gallery, since it happens to be a dedicated home for your images, and an obvious comfortable environment for almost every client. Exposure is most important for any artist, and it is unfortunate that any economic situation can control the lives of too many individuals without warning, whether they are employed by the business, or whether the unfortunate participants happen to be one day too late.

I have not lost anything just yet, since I do not have my counsel's advice, but if I do become the dirty short end of a stick, I will try to contain myself in a quiet peaceful controlled manner. As a side note, the images placed within your associate's recent Fresno auction, happen to be the last images framed by the gallery.

I agree it is portfolio review time, where there is fresh snow in the mountains, the air is crisp, the bears are sleeping, and I have some fresh TMY-2 to expose.

Merci, for that better thought... :)

jim k

[Stephen Willard]

I heard a similar story from a photographer I met briefly in the field. When he finally was able to recover his work it very badly damaged. Glass was broken, frames were scratched and the list goes on.

I have not had any of these problems yet, and would like to avoid the possibility of it happening to me in future. What do I need for proof of ownership? For the work I sell through other outlets, do I need a contract that states they are responsible for the care of the photographs and liable for costs incurred to repair any damaged photographs?

[Nathan Potter]

Jim, I think Merg has good advice. Being in the field with camera in hand can be the best of therapy. The total attention and intense visualization to what is before you will clear your mind like nothing else. Boy, if I was in Calgary now I'd head for the snowy scene at the base of Takacaw falls in Yoho, provided I could get there. That switchback on the way in could be a killer in the winter. As I'm sure you know, Johnston Canyon out side of Banff is splendid and intimate. All needs a bit of time though. Seems to be a bit of a warmup in those parts too - however so brief.

Nate Potter, Austin TX.

[Capocheny]

Hi Jim,

Sorry to hear you're caught up in such a situation.

My fingers will are crossed in the hope that you'll be successful in getting your images back.

Best wishes.

Cheers

[William McEwen]

Jim, you might also contact any other artists you know were represented by the gallery. You could pool your resources and hire an attorney together.

[jim kitchen]

Dear William et al,

Thank you for the suggestion, but I did think of that too, unfortunately, I am not privy to the list of resident artists, nor do I know any of them directly, other than a general pass-me-by acknowledgement in the gallery. There were more than two hundred artists affected by this unfortunate event. That said, I contacted the receiver last week to gain clarity on an issue, where they responded in a polite but rather terse manner explaining that they are busy with the inventory, and they are overwhelmed. I leave those moments to my counsel, where she is more adept at being a polite pit bull, compared to my rip your frigging head off composure, and where her gripping response is more effective, but I must say her method is not as gratifying as mine. They will issue a response by January 18, 2010.

I have my paperwork prepared and my counsel diligently working in their sandbox... :)

jim k

[Dave Aharonian]

Jim,

I just saw this thread and wanted to say how sorry I am to hear this. It would certainly ruin my week! Everything I thought of has been said already. If it was me I'd be a royal pain in their ass to get my work back. And I'd get out and do some shooting which always makes me feel great. Good luck!

Dave

[jim kitchen]

Dear Group,

At 2:00Pm MST, January 19, 2009 I received my complete inventory, totalling twenty-five framed images from the receiver, where they were properly packaged and wrapped for shipping, and where they arrived safely without incident... :)

Thank you for your thoughts, and thank you for your comments, regarding this unfortunate matter.

jim k

[brian mcweeney]

Good stuff happens.

[cdholden]

Congrats!
It must be good karma that brought them home. Did you cash in an attaboy?

[Vick Vickery]

Contratulations, Jim!!! Every once in a while things work out like they're supposed to! :)

[al olson]

Good to hear, Jim. I am glad it worked out.

The return of twenty-five framed images, though, could create a serious storage problem. If you need help with the storage ...

[Ron McElroy]

Great News! Glad you could recover your work.

[mandoman7]

Its a good thing you didn't act on Dakota's suggestion, Jim, since you'd be facing prison for no good reason.

I have been screwed by galleries several times like some others, but going into receivership is not necessarily an indication of unscrupulous business practices as we have learned here.

We tend to add a level of value to the images we produce and take exception when they are treated like property, but that is the bottom line in these events. The practice of putting all the assets in a safe place while stuff is figured out makes sense and is pretty standard in the busiiness world.

I have friends who are gallery owners and feel that their role in conveying art to the public gets marginalized by artists beyond the reality of the situation. I would say that in some cases, the gallery is truly an ally to the photographer and has their best interests at heart. Maybe 20% only, but lets not paint them all as mercenary.

[Kirk Gittings]

Glad it worked out for you Jim. You handled it professionally and they responded professionally.

[William McEwen]

I love happy endings. Congratulations, Jim, and thanks for the update.

[jim kitchen]

Gentlemen,

Your words do not go unnoticed. At times, life can treat you well, and better than expected... :)

I will seek another local gallery to display my images, as time permits, and since our community happens to be involved with "Exposure 2010," which occurs in February within the surrounding township areas, I will seek approval to display my work at the local gallery level for wall space during that event. Last year "Exposure" was a successful event, where I donated a framed image to assist the Alberta College of Art and Design student's scholarship fund auction. Now that I have my images safely in my hands, I can exercise that donation, once again.

Merci,

jim k

[jim kitchen]

Just an update regarding the older information...

A local gallery named "Websters Gallery Inc." decided today to present my work going forward.

The gallery information is located here: http://www.webstergalleries.com/

I am back in business locally... :)

jim k

[Andrew ren]

Good for you, Jim.

Cheers

Andrew