A CODE OF CONDUCT FOR CONTEMPORARY ART COLLECTORS

A code of conduct for collectors would only make sense if it came from collectors themselves, in an act of self-regulation and as a gesture of accountability. Accordingly, the Code has been discussed and drafted, for over a year, as a thought-provoking, consensus-based, creative endeavor by a collective of collectors active both at local and international levels. We are based in Europe, South and North America, with approximately half of us identifying as female and half as male (writing team: Pedro Barbosa, Haro Cumbusyan, Iordanis Kerenidis, Evrim Oralkan, Jessica Oralkan, Piergiorgio Pepe, Sandra Terdjman, Andre Zivanari). We circulated the Code as a draft for consultation to several professionals, including other collectors, artists, media professionals, curators, and dealers, this time with a broader geographical scope and a more diverse expertise; their comments and suggestions have been discussed and integrated into the Code, to reflect collective and multiple views on these matters.

The Code was drafted using the language of professional ethics—what is generally referred to as deontology—a discipline well established in public interest sectors (e.g., health, transport, energy) but to an extent underutilized in the artworld. Deontology relates to the behavior of professionals and the power relations that can trigger conflicts of interest, lack of transparency and integrity, corruption, abuse of dominance, undue influence, etc.

Fore more information please visit the website of Ethics of Collecting