Guideline 8. Contracts
Contracts are normally divided between the initial design proposal and a contract for the full commission. In addition separate contracts and payment arrangements may be required for sub contractors and fabricators.
There are few ‘standard’ artists contracts. Many clients will seek to adapt their regular contracts. However the demands of some large contracts may not be suitable or acceptable to an individual artist – if in doubt artists are advised to seek an independent legal view. Legal discussion of artists’ contract issues is available from the Artlaw Archive.
Most artists’ contracts are accompanied by a detailed schedule which shows all aspects of what is expected and can be used to trigger stage payments. For most artists stage payments are essential.
The following offers a checklist of contract stages and issues to consider.
Click on a heading below for more information or scroll down the page to read the whole guideline.
Design proposal
- consultation
- schedule of work
- timetable and deadlines
- budget breakdown
- approval
- acceptance and completion
- payment schedule
- copyright
Full commission
- project background
- schedule of work
- timetable and deadlines
- budget breakdown
- maintenance
- sub-contractors
- payment schedule
- delivery of the work
- warranties
- indemnity
- ownership and risk
- copyright
- moral rights
- termination of the agreement
- disputes
- signed by both parties
Fabrication
- artist or fabricator
- technical drawings
- engineering assessment
- health and safety requirements
- material samples
- method statement
- sub-contractor contracts
- quality control and viewing of work in progress
- coordination between suppliers and fabricators
Installation
It is important to anticipate all aspects of installing a work, including:
- site safety
- site security
- site permissions
- site preparation
- foundations and fixings
- integration with other contractors and site works
- on-site support
- storage
- transport, handling, packing, crainage and plant
- insurance
- method statement
Future maintenance
Issues of ownership, maintenance and repair need to be factored into the project planning stage:
- ownership of the artwork
- site ownership
- maintenance schedule
- cleaning schedule
- system for reporting problems
- artist to be consulted on any repairs
