“Homo artifex: the legal-economic status, the political-social role of the artist in the contemporary world”

 “Legal and economic profiles of the profession of artist”

by Enzo Varricchio

Abstract

Only few legislations in the world recognize a legal  status to the Artist and a specific exploitation to his mastery.

In many cases, the recalls to the indispensable role played by the artist in the society remain excluded even from the constitutional papers of many countries that however boast a high-sounding tradition in the Fine Arts, as for example Italy.

Not to mention the Civil Codifications, that most time consider the artist close to any other intellectual professional, without caring about the macroscopic heterogeneities existing between a lawyer, an engineer, a business consultant and who made his own indefinable science become an art.

In brief, it is possible to reasonably affirm that the main person of the artistic phenomenon is much less considered and protected on a legal level than the object, the Opera.

It certainly would not be pleasant  to see the ineffable qualities of the genius codified and entrapped in a normative provision but it is, on the contrary, better to make clear those that are the prerogatives and the minimum conditions necessary for the artist to have a protection and an exploitation completely particular, because quite particular is his nature and absolutely fundamental is the role he plays in the society.

But the modern legal systems continue to consider the artist a kind of incurable Bohemienne, undeserving of attention.

What lacks is a legislation that boosts the choice to dedicate oneself to the artistic career rather than to the notarial or journalistic one. Infact the great majority of artists in the world remain non-professional although not amateurs.

This prevents the artist from saying their precious word about the main decisions of politics and administration, regarding for example the restoration of an old inhabited centre or the issuing of management, fiscal or professional measures.

The writing lingers upon the present condition of the body of legislation in international law and in the law of single states, at the same time proposing de iure condendo, possible hypothesis of solution to the problems.

Index

I. “Legal and economic profiles of the profession of artist” (by Enzo Varricchio: please, see before).

II. “The artist, weak person of the art market”.

III. “Comparatist profiles in the artist copyright subject”

IV. “Artists in power: rockstars, great architects and famous actors on the social and political scene”

V. “Artists without power: painters, sculptors, musicians, writers”

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