Finance & Legal

FINANCE

Taking Care of the Future You: Retirement Options for Creatives
Thinking about retirement can be overwhelming. But don’t worry! We’ve gathered expertise on the topic to give you the confidence to start planning for your future from our partners at Brass Taxes. 

LLCs, S-Corps, Sole-Proprietor, and Other Business Entities for Artists
In this post, Rus Garofalo and Eric Stoddard from Brass Taxes review questions to consider when you earn income from your creative work, and explain the common types of business entities artists use.

What Artists and Creatives Need to Know this Tax Season
Do you find tax season stressful and unnecessarily confusing? It’s not just you! This post shares insights from Brass Taxes, a team of tax preparers who deliver personalized tax guidance to freelancers and artists. 

The Artist’s Survival Guide to Tax Season
Tax filing essentials for creative freelancers and small business owners.

Business Models: What Are They?
A business model primer for individual artists, arts organizations, and for-profit ventures with active arts programming.

Building a Project Budget
Step-by-step tips for project budget building.

How to Budget as an Artist
Three steps to start taking control of your finances.

LEGAL

Copyright 101
NYFA Board Chair Marc Jason on copyright essentials and how creatives can arm themselves with information to help protect their work as well as enjoy the freedoms to reference others’ works to help move our culture forward.

Legal Primer for Visual Artists: Copyright, Fair Use, and Gallery Agreements
This post shares several best practices around common legal issues for visual artists, as discussed in a workshop presented by New York City Bar Association’s Art Law Committee and the New York Foundation for the Arts.

Grey Area: Copyright and Fair Use in AI-Generated Artworks
One of the most pressing facing artists today is the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in art and the copyright issues surrounding it. This post distills insights from a Center for Art Law panel discussion on the topic.

Contracts 101: The What and Why of a Contract
Contracts are important business and relationship management tools for creatives—insurance in both the best- and worst-case scenarios. Learn more about them here in easy-to-understand terms from Laura Levin-Dando, Staff Attorney at Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts New York, via Creative Study (Fiscally Sponsored by NYFA). 

A Tenant’s Guide into the Unknown
What you need to understand eviction, rent, and contracts, courtesy of Tin-Fu (Tiffany) Tsai, Esq., Co-Chair of the Pro Bono Steering Committee of New York State Bar Association’s Entertainment, Arts and Sports Law Section (EASL).

Doing Business Online
Get a legal perspective on doing business online from Elyse Dreyer, Compliance Council, Sotheby’s. If you’re already doing business online or if you’re thinking of taking the next step in growing your business, this post is for you!

Your Art Will Outlive You – How to Protect it Now!
NYFA and New York State Bar Association Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law (EASL) Section’s Fine Arts and Pro Bono Committees joined forces to present a panel on how to preserve your and extend your creative legacy after you’re gone. Get the basics on estate planning, key event takeaways, brush up on helpful legal terms, and find additional resources.

Know Your Rights Sanctuary Training Essentials
Learn basic tips on how to help provide sanctuary and support to immigrant and refugee artists and colleagues.

Looking for legal resources for immigrant artists? Check out the IAP Resource Directory.

Image: Sean Sullivan (Fellow in Printmaking/Drawing/Book Arts ’17), Saudade Station, 2017