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The Fontana Effect: Why Protecting Your Artistic Vision Pays
For artists, few things are more sacred than the integrity of their creative vision. And in today’s era, safeguarding that vision legally and financially is paramount.
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When ARS member Lucio Fontana’s seminal Concetto spaziale, La fine di Dio (1963-1964) hits the auction block at Sotheby’s next month, it will be more than just another high-profile sale. This $20-30 million masterpiece represents a profound statement on the importance of protecting an artist’s visionary work and rights.
Fontana’s transcendent La fine di Dio series didn’t just push painting into new spatial and cosmic dimensions – it sparked an entire artistic movement called Spatialism that redefined the boundaries of creative expression. This particular canvas has been hailed as “Fontana at his finest” – the purest embodiment of his decades-long exploration into light, depth and breaking free from the constraints of the traditional picture plane.
Fontana’s legacy stands as a powerful case study for Artist Rights Society and our members. By legally enshrining protections like attribution and integrity rights, ARS ensures that groundbreaking artistic visions like Fontana’s remain shielded from misrepresentation or unauthorized modification over time.
The astronomical $20-30 million estimate for his Concetto spaziale, La fine di Dio masterpiece could very well set a new benchmark for the artist, whose current auction record of $29.2 million was set in 2015. This blockbuster sale proves that safeguarding an artist’s visionary legacy pays profound dividends – both philosophically and financially. It demonstrates the transformative impact of upholding creators’ rights, allowing their works to be fully celebrated while exponentially increasing in cultural significance and market value over time.
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Lucio Fontana, Concetto spaziale, La fine di Dio (1963–64). © 2024 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / SIAE, Rome
