Canadian artists to get slice of resale money for their work through copyright change

The late Inuk artist Kenojuak Ashevak, who sold a work called Enchanted Owl in 1960 for $24. That piece later sold for $240,000 at an auction house.

Painters, sculptors and other visual artists are poised to get a slice of the proceeds when their art is resold, under changes designed to boost their incomes to be brought forward in an omnibus budget bill.

The government announced plans in its budget last week to change copyright law to create an Artist’s Resale Right in Canada, so visual artists benefit from future sales of their work, including if they are resold at auction.

The move would bring Canada in line with many other countries that have similar royalty regimes, including Britain, Australia and France.

Canadian artists currently get no financial benefit, even if their work is r