Ramifications of Donating Art Featured in New York Times Article

I’ve cautioned about donating art to charities in previous Art Marketing Action newsletters (and here). Today’s New York Times lays it all out in “Donating Work for Charity Has a Downside for Artists.”

Among the highlights:

Artists who create special editions and/or a series of work just for donating.
Artists and dealers who are attaching “resale riders” to donated artwork–ensuring that the new owner doesn’t “flip” the work immediately and make a huge profit on his or her supposed charitable act.
Organizations that are asking collectors to donate artwork instead of artists. They, after all, are able to take a full deduction in the U.S., whereas artists are only allowed to deduct the costs of materials.