The contract
The contract includes a 5-year vesting period before ownership is automatically transferred to the new owner. During that time, the contract grants the artist the right to sell the work or borrow the work for exhibition. The contract grants the borrower a right of first refusal and a prorated discount on the retail price, if the artist is approached by another buyer during the vesting period. After 5 years the ownership is transferred to the new collector, after which the contract grants the artist 50% of the sale price if the work is ever sold, and a 10% royalty in perpetuity on subsequent resales. Originally developed for William Powhida by NYU Professor Amy Whitaker and artist and attorney Alfred Steiner, the contract is designed to allow artists to give their work away without letting go of its potential value. The contract is available to read here.

Benefit to artists:
Our perspective is that the market is a fiction for most working artists. Artists sell artwork when we can, but most make far more work than we can sell, and many of us would be thrilled to have more of our artworks find loving homes. This is a way to take those artworks out of the dark.

Individual artists benefit by clearing space in their storage or studios, making new collectors, friends and relationships, and retaining a stake in the future value of their works, including resale royalties in perpetuity. Collectively, artists benefit by increasing advocacy for artists’ moral rights and resale royalty rights, and by creating a larger constituency of people who live with – and value – contemporary art.

Access to art:
Zero Art Fair is always free to attend. The first three days of the fair will be open to the public as a preview exhibition. For the last two days of the fair access to the artworks will be prioritized for people who usually can’t afford original art. We were inspired by food writer Mark Bittman’s idea for a Community Kitchen, a restaurant where patrons of various incomes eat under the same roof. Zero Art Fair will create a system of tiered access for those who would like to collect art. Potential collectors will be asked to put themselves in one of three categories:

1. I can afford to help others live with art.
2. I can sometimes afford to buy art for myself.
3. I need help to live with art.

The fair will reserve the majority of tickets for those who need help to live with art. The fair will create access to fine art for many people who usually can not afford it, and artists will know that in most cases their works will be given away to those who were not in a position to afford them.

Antecedents:
Zero Art Fair is an adaptation of an idea that’s been out there for decades. Here are some of our inspirations and antecedents:

• Seth Siegelaub and Robert Projansky’s The Artist’s Reserved Rights Transfer and Sale Agreement
• Adam Simon’s Fine Art Adoption Network
• Craig Platt’s Trashed exhibition in Los Angeles
• Sean Naftel’s Free Art at #Rank
• Yevginiy Fiks’ Adopt Lenin at Winkleman Gallery
• Cameron Rowland’s rental agreements
• Jade Townsend’s Crazy Amazing Garage Sale at Auxiliary Projects
• William Powhida’s Store-to-Own contract and project

Funding:
In 2024, the fair’s host Manon Slome provided the use of her beautiful Hudson Valley NY barn for the venue and supported our fundraising launch event at the Francis Kite Club in NYC. The expenses of building and putting on the fair were covered by that fundraiser, sales of fine art prints by the two organizers, and sponsorship donations by The FLAG Art Foundation and Netvvrk. In-kind support was provided by Supreme Digital (poster and banner printing), Blue Medium (PR), and B. Avery Fine Art Services (art-handling). The co-organizers and virtually all the people who lent their labors were unpaid.

Our 2025 fair sponsors are our host The FLAG Art Foundation and Gagosian, who are covering the costs of the 5-day fair. We are grateful for the increased level of support, which means that the people working on Zero Art Fair–including the organizers and curators–will be paid for their time, and the fair can offer each participating artist an honorarium of $100. There still remain costs that are not covered, however, and we continue to seek additional sponsors and funding to cover shipping and transport costs for participating artists, and costs associated with our website and digital infrastructure.

We have also been helped by our amazing advisory board and curatorial committee.

If you’re interested in supporting the present or future of Zero Art Fair, please get in touch at zeroartfair@gmail.com or contribute here.