About Clancco


Clancco is an interdisciplinary web project based out of Brooklyn, New York, which explores, investigates, and examines the relationship between art and law. Clancco keeps its readers abreast of news and events dealing with the intersection of art and law, with a particular focus on intellectual property law, the first amendment, nonprofit arts organizations, and their effect on contemporary visual art. Through writings, interviews, lectures and symposiums, Clancco aims to disseminate this information to art and legal professionals as well as to students from educational institutions at all levels. Read more about us.

Radio Red ☼ Black Ink

Madoff "Feeder" to Sell Art Collection

Clancco  ||   30 June 2009   ||   (0)

Bombarded by lawsuits accusing him of fraud in connection with the Madoff scandal (including one from New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo), New York financier J. Ezra Merkin and his wife have arranged to sell their collection of paintings by abstract expressionist Mark Rothko, as well as some valuable sculptures by Alberto Giacometti. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, "[a]n anonymous buyer has agreed to pay $310 million for the trove...[.]"

Oxford University Returns Aboriginal Remains

Clancco  ||   28 June 2009   ||   (0)

Just last month, a delegation from the Ngarrindjeri tribe collected three skulls from Oxford University, acquired in the 1860s. When Ngarrindjeri elder Major Sumner, his body painted in ochres, conducted the formal handover ceremony on the university lawns, he felt a sense of satisfaction. "It's a big accomplishment, not only for us but for Oxford University, as it's the first time they've agreed to repatriate," says Sumner. "It sends a clear message to other British institutions. Why do they need to hold on to our 'old people'?"

The Guardian has the entire story here.

Photos Stolen From Art Exhibit

Clancco  ||   28 June 2009   ||   (0)

Police say 14 photographs worth $42,000 have been stolen from an exhibit at the Kimball-Jenkins Estate in Concord, N.H. The stolen pieces were among 20 black-and-white photos taken by Michael Garlington, a northern California photographer.

Bonn Museum Exhibits Fake Modigliani

Clancco  ||   28 June 2009   ||   (0)

At a retrospective exhibition of works by artist Amedeo Modigliani in Bonn, at least one of the paintings is said to be fake. The case is under investigation. Art expert Henrik Hanstein, managing partner at one of the leading art auction houses in Europe, explains in an interview:

This has to do with Modigliani himself, who certainly didn't live the kind of orderly life that every art cataloger hopes for - he didn't register or photograph every painting. Modigliani's estate was scattered very quickly in all directions and it quickly became a kind of Bohemian myth and, thus, an easy target for imitators.

Entire interview at Deutsche Welle.

Judge Posner: Against Hyperlinking and Paraphrasing

Clancco  ||   26 June 2009   ||   (0)

Richard Posner, a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in Chicago and a Senior Lecturer at the University of Chicago Law School, has just posted a blog entry, The Future of Newspapers, where he outlines the impact of our current economic situation on the newspaper industry. Although not directly related to art his post is crucial not only to blogs like Clancco and other art blogs, but also artist websites that hyperlink to newspaper and journal articles, directly or by paraphrasing an articles content. In his blog, Posner ends his entry by arguing that news service providers such as Reuters and the Associated Press should be able to bar access to their content if we believe in "professional, nongovernmental sources of news and opinion."

Expanding copyright law to bar online access to copyrighted materials without the copyright holder's consent, or to bar linking to or paraphrasing copyrighted materials without the copyright holder's consent, might be necessary to keep free riding on content financed by online newspapers from so impairing the incentive to create costly news-gathering operations that news services like Reuters and the Associated Press would become the only professional, nongovernmental sources of news and opinion.

Against our own interests, we have to agree with Judge Posner. For an alternative viewpoint on Judge Posner's arguments, see Techdirt's Mike Masnick.

Ponzi Scheme Kills 9/11 Monument

Clancco  ||   26 June 2009   ||   (0)

The Securities and Exchange Commission alleges Coadum Advisers Inc. raised $30 million by promising investors returns as high as 6 percent per month. The SEC contends that these fraudulent investments financed a towering sculpture in the Maryland mountains depicting three New York City firefighters raising the US flag at Ground Zero. In hopes of repaying the defrauded investors, the 40-foot bronze statue unveiled in November 2007 at the National Emergency Training Center in Emmitsburg, Md., is for sale.



Soho, New York City. © 2008 Clancco

Concealment and Law in the Work of Carey Young

Carey Young's art projects--invoking legal language and procedures--highlight the connection between law and visual culture without divorcing themselves from art historical discourses. Young's work revolves around the role of categorization, narrative, and rhetorical/linguistic contestations. In particular, Young's work seeks to elucidate how these three modes of linguistic production function not only within legal frameworks, but also how they in turn frame and are framed by other cultural discourses.

Continue reading "Concealment and Law in the Work of Carey Young" »

In A Nutshell




Lectures & Presentations


Harlem Arts Alliance, February 9, 2009

Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, February 10, 2009

International Center of Photography, April 4, 2009

Pratt Institute, April 7, 2009

Polytechnic University/NYU, April 17, 2009

Bronx Art Museum, AIM Program, April 21, 2009

School of Visual Arts, May 13, 2009

Dia: Beacon, June 27, 2009

Transitio Electronic Arts and Video Festival, Mexico City, October 1-11, 2009

For more information on presentations and lectures, please contact Sergio Muñoz Sarmiento at sergio_sarmiento@clancco.com





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