Hello, my name is Theresie Tungilik. I'm from Rankin Inlet, and I'm an artist. Addressing the artist's resale right for Canadian artists would be a huge step for Canada to take. This would touch on all artists in all walks of life, and people who are well or have disabilities, to gain financially.
Some 93 countries have laws that support for the artist's resale rights, when the dollars are given back to the real artists after a resale. These rights, in turn, not only benefit the Canadian galleries, museums, auction houses, and the artists, but our country as a whole. Countries that abide by the artist's resale right will be able to pay our Canadian artists from their countries when their art has been resold. Making the artist's resale right a law in Canada can only be a win-win situation for both the artists and our country.
My father, Mark Tungilik, carved nearly every day. This was his income. This was his way of providing for the seven of us, along with his hunting. My father's carvings have been and are in many Canadian and European art galleries. Since his passing in 1986, I have become his beneficiary for his artwork. Yet, for the last 30 years I have not received a nickel, though there are records of his carvings being resold through galleries, museums, and auction houses, both in Canada and abroad. This is our reality as Canadian artists; we are forgotten.
If the Canadian government takes action to make it law to have the artist's resale right, this would greatly increase the art business world. As an example, I would like to take Kenojuak Ashevak with her The Enchanted Owl. When she made this print in Cape Dorset, Nunavut, she received an embarrassingly measly $24 for the print. After her passing, this same print fetched over $34,000 at an auction house, meaning she could have received over $1,700 had the artist's resale right been in place.
As Inuit art is well known nationally and internationally, this artist's resale right can grow our economy due to the fact that much Inuit art is sold and resold to galleries, museums, and auction houses in our country and abroad. This would be an expansion of our national economy as most of the art is due mostly to their communities, meaning that the money stays in our country after it has come in from other countries. Art among Inuit is a big business. It brings in more than $30 million annually just into Nunavut. Many northerners cannot find jobs due to the lack of job availability.
When you look at urban, rural, and remote communities, art brings in cash and supplements low income. The artist's resale right will have a positive financial impact as 10% of Canada's export is Inuit art. Imagine how much more the other Canadian artists who sell within the 93 countries would bring into Canada. The remote communities would really benefit from the artist's resale right as we in Nunavut have the highest cost of living.
For many, jobs are hard to find and living on social assistance is not their choice, but some people need to have it, because families need to feed their children. If they are artists, the artist's resale right would increase their household income and there would be less dependency on the government and it would help to bring about self-reliance.
Foreign visitors and dignitaries are usually given art as a gift, because art is thriving in the northern communities of Canada and is beautifully created. This shows the importance of Canadian identity.
Since the creation of Nunavut on April 1, 1999, Inuit have become sought after by more countries. France, England, Germany, and Japan remain the strong buyers of Inuit art.
Though I am Canadian, I am a northerner. I feel assured that I can speak for artists from my region. With Canada legislating the artist's resale right, I know it can only help and not hinder our northern economics. I know every dollar counts, and I can only imagine how happy an artist will be upon receiving his or her first-ever royalty cheque. With this kind of expectation, this can lead to more innovative creations of the art. How important the artist will feel that his or her art is worthy enough to be sold and resold again. The amazing thing would be that he or she would be paid again and again from those pieces.
The artist's resale right isn't going to cost the federal government anything, yet would put cash into the hands of its artists. Now is the right time for our great nation to make that move.
Thank you.