PRIZE REVIEW: Glover Prize 2023
This month, Arts Law has reviewed the terms and conditions of the Glover Prize 2023 in Tasmania. You can read the terms and conditions of this competition here.
The deadline for this competition is Friday 27 January 2023.
What is the rating?
How did Arts Law help?
Arts Law reached out to the John Glover Society Inc. (the Organisers) to make the competition’s terms and conditions more friendly to artists. The Organisers were receptive to our suggestions, but were not willing to update the terms for this year’s competition and said they would consider doing so next year.
How artist-friendly is this competition?
This competition is moderately artist friendly.
The competition has a substantial acquisitive prize of $75,000 for the winner, and a lengthy public exhibition for finalists. There are also other smaller prizes ($3,000 for the People’s Choice, $500 for the Children’s Choice, and $500 for the Hanger’s Choice). These offer good financial and profile-raising opportunities for entrants.
In exchange the Organisers ask for a limited licence, but the terms of this licence could be a lot clearer. Unfortunately, the terms do not address moral rights at all (like how entrants will be credited for their work).
How do the copyright terms stack up?
Copyright is a bundle of rights that protect literary, artistic, musical and dramatic works (as well as films and sound recordings). These rights allow the owner of copyright to control the ways that a work is used. If you want to learn more, you can read Arts Law’s Information Sheet on Copyright here.
There is no express statement that copyright remains with entrants, but this is implied by the other terms.
It is great to see that the Organisers only ask for a licence from finalists and not from all entrants. The licence is limited “for promotional, review and educational purposes and/or the future promotion of the John Glover Society Inc.”. However, it is not explicitly stated that this licence is non-exclusive or whether it is limited to non-commercial uses. The purposes are a little vague (e.g. ‘promotional purposes’ is very broad and could relate to a lot of different activities).
It would have also been good if the licence was limited to a reasonable term (e.g., 2-3 years) rather than not stating a term at all.
Does the competition respect moral rights?
Creators have moral rights when their work is used (i) to attribution, (ii) against false attribution, and (iii) to integrity, which means not having their work treated in a derogatory way. For more information, you can read Arts Law’s Information Sheet on Moral Rights here.
It is disappointing that the terms do not mention moral rights at all.
It would have been good to see the Organisers explicitly commit to prominently attributing the artist when exhibiting or otherwise using their work. This is the way that artists are able to raise their profiles. Similarly, it would have been best practice for the Organisers to commit to not altering the works in any way without the prior written consent of the artist.
Other issues
This competition offers no insurance to cover or protect the artwork, even whilst the artwork is on exhibition or in the care of the Organisers. It would be best practice for the Organisers to provide insurance cover to protect the artwork while in their possession. Instead the Organisers take no responsibility for any loss or damage to the work, which is not best practice and is unfair to artists.
In relation to the prizes other than the main acquisitive prize, it is not clear in the terms and conditions how these prizes will be judged. It is best practice for the terms to step through how a prize will be judged and awarded.
What could they have done better?
This competition could have improved its terms by updating the following:
- Clarify and strengthen the limits of the copyright licence (e.g. state that it is non-exclusive and include a fixed term).
- Include terms about how the prize will respect the moral rights of entrants.
- Explain how the prizes, other than the main acquisitive prize, will be determined.
- Take responsibility and insure all artworks while they are in the Organiser’s possession.
You can lodge a query with us here if you would like to obtain advice from Arts Law about this competition.
What is the Glover Prize about?
The competition is the Glover Prize, named after a colonial artist John Glover (1967-1849), is an award for landscape painting of Tasmania, awarded by The John Glover Society Inc. Entry is open to artists local, domestic and international.
Entries must be any two dimensional medium, excluding film and photography, that must be no older than 12 months and not exhibited in any previous awards.
Judges will review digital copies of all artworks entered, selecting those artworks that will be exhibited. All exhibited artworks will be for sale and will be eligible to win the prizes. The exhibition of the finalist’s paintings will be held at Falls Park Pavillion in Evandale, Tasmania. Some of these works may be exhibited further at the Henry Jones Art Hotel in Hobart.
What prizes are on offer in Glover Prize 2023?
- John Glover Prize – $75,000 (acquisitive)
- People’s Choice Award – $,3000
- Children’s Choice Award – $500
- Hanger’s Choice Award – $500
About
Arts Law regularly reviews the terms and conditions of competitions and rates them out of five stars. Our review looks broadly at the terms and conditions of a competition. In particular, we look closely at how a competition deals with an entrant’s copyright and moral rights, and consider this in light of the prize. Entrants should always take into account the possible profile-raising which may result from being a finalist or winner.
By accepting the terms and conditions of a competition, entrants should be aware that they may be entering a legally binding contract.
For more information, see our free information sheet on competition conditions. Artists are welcome to contact Arts Law for legal advice on the terms of a competition. We also invite competition organisers to contact Arts Law for best practice assistance to make their terms and conditions fairer for artists.
Please note: Prior to February 2018, Arts Law’s rated out of five stars only the terms of a competition which dealt with copyright and moral rights. Arts Law’s competition reviews are now more holistic, such that our rating out of five stars now reflects a broad review of all the terms and conditions of the competition. For more information see our website.
Further Information
Please email us at [email protected] to tell us about any competitions or prizes you think we should check.
See more about Arts Law’s campaign to improve competition terms and conditions in the Prizes and Competitions section.