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Gilane Tawadros portrait
© David Barrett/ Photoshot 2009.
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1984 was an important year for UK artists and visual creators. This was the year that an ambitious group of artists and legal professionals got together to set up the Design and Artists Copyright Society.
As DACS turns 25 this year we have every reason to be proud. DACS was the first organisation in the UK to deal specifically with the copyright licensing of artistic work. Today DACS generates millions of pounds of royalties each year for thousands of artists and visual creators, not just through Copyright Licensing but also through Payback and the Artist's Resale Right service.
Initially supported by a grant from the Callouste Gulbenkian Foundation and with help from our French colleagues, DACS set up shop in a cupboard under the stairs in the offices of law firm Stephens Innocent.
"We had a typewriter, telephone, desk and a drawer in a filing cabinet," recalls
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Janet Tod, an artist and DACS staff member since 1984. "A 'web' was something spun by spiders and a 'mouse' was regularly (humanely) evicted from our office."
The icing on DACS' birthday cake has to be the appointment of Gilane Tawadros as DACS' new Chief Executive. No stranger to the art world, Gilane has spent her career working in the visual arts as a curator, writer, critic and chief executive.
"I am thrilled to join DACS as its new Chief Executive." says Gilane. "It is a
privilege to represent the rights of visual artists who make such a vital contribution to
our culture and society."
In May, the Kowalsky Gallery will host a special anniversary exhibition '1984' showcasing work by DACS members.
What were you up to in 1984? Tell us and we'll publish them in the next issue. Email editor@dacs.org.uk
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| 1984 |
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DACS set up. |
| 1985 |
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First copyright licence issued for work by Eric Ravillious |
| 1988 |
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Copyright extended to 70 years after death in the UK. |
| 1999 |
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Collective licensing royalties paid to visual creators for the first time. |
| 2001 |
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DACS collective licensing service relaunches as Payback. |
| 2002 |
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DACS hosts exhibition as part of CISAC World Conference. |
| 2002 |
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DACS
pays £1million of royalties to artists. |
| 2004 |
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DACS celebrates 20 years with an exhibition at the Mall Galleries, London. |
| 2006 |
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20th
anniversary exhibition at the Mall Galleries, London. |
| 2006 |
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Artist's Resale Right implemented in UK. |
| 2006 |
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The
Kowalsky Gallery at DACS opens. |
| 2008 |
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DACS pays a record £7.2 million of royalties to artists and visual creators. |
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