What is the ‘droit de suite’?

The droit de suite, also known as the “Artist’s Resale Right,” is an important legal concept in art law in South Carolina. It grants artists the right to receive a portion of the proceeds when their artwork is resold. This means that whenever a piece of art is sold at a higher price than the one it was purchased for, the artist can receive a royalty from the resale of their artwork. In South Carolina, the droit de suite is based on the federal Visual Artists Rights Act (VARA) and applies to all visual artworks created after June 1, 1991. Visual artworks include paintings, sculptures, prints, photographs, and even murals. The amount of royalties due to the artist depends on the amount of money generated from the resell of the artwork and the amount of time since the artwork was created. The artist is generally entitled to 5% of the total sale price when the artwork is resold. The droit de suite also provides important protection for the artist. It helps ensure that the artist will benefit from the financial gain of the resale market and that artwork created by the artist will remain protected. Additionally, the droit de suite safeguards the integrity of the artist’s work and prevents buyers of artwork from attempting to scalp the artwork at higher prices than what it was originally billed for.

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What is the ‘droit de suite’?

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