{"id":140143,"date":"2022-11-26T18:13:09","date_gmt":"2022-11-26T18:13:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/bob-dylan-apologizes-for-selling-machine-signed-art-prints-and-books\/"},"modified":"2022-11-26T18:13:09","modified_gmt":"2022-11-26T18:13:09","slug":"bob-dylan-apologizes-for-selling-machine-signed-art-prints-and-books","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/bob-dylan-apologizes-for-selling-machine-signed-art-prints-and-books\/","title":{"rendered":"Bob Dylan Apologizes for Selling Machine-Signed Art Prints and Books"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\tBob Dylan issued a rare public statement Friday night to admit that he \u201cregrets\u201d having made \u201can error in judgment\u201d in using machine technology to affix duplicate signatures to artwork and books that were advertised and sold as hand-signed over the past three years . <\/p>\n
\n
\tHe says the use of autopen signatures only occurred since 2019, when he was afflicted with a case of vertigo, and on through the pandemic, when he was not able to have staff assist him with the hand-signing he had previously done. Dylan says he was given \u201cthe assurance that this kind of thing is done ‘all the time’ in the art and literary worlds.\u201d Now that it has come to light and stirred controversy, the singer-songwriter says, \u201cI want to rectify it immediately. I’m working with Simon & Schuster and my gallery partners to do just that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n
\tOther musicians have been suspected of using autopen for purportedly hand-signed items, and in rare instances have even owned up to it, but the others have not been selling art prints that routinely sell for $3,000 to $15,000, as Dylan’s art prints do. Dylan’s statement indicating that he has used for autopen to sign artwork follows Simon & Schuster’s admission one week ago that a batch of $600 autographed copies of Dylan’s new book, \u201cPhilosophy of Modern Song,\u201d had been machine-signed, with refunds immediately offered.<\/p>\n
\n
\tA gallery that has specialized in selling Dylan art prints, the UK-based Castle Galleries, issued a statement Saturday to say it was \u201creaching out to each and every one of our collectors who purchased any print from the (pertinent) editions to offer a solution to fully rectify the matter.\u201d It’s believed that galleries that sold the recent artwork will be announcing a plan to deal with the issue early this week.<\/p>\n
\n
\tDylan’s statement, published on his Facebook account, says that he did hand-sign everything that was advertised as such up until 2019. It reads as follows:<\/p>\n
\n
\t\u201cTo my fans and followers, I’ve been made aware that there’s some controversy about signatures on some of my recent artwork prints and on a limited edition of ‘Philosophy Of Modern Song.’ I’ve hand-signed each and every art print over the years, and there’s never been a problem,\u201d the statement begins.<\/p>\n
\n
\t\u201cHowever, in 2019 I had a bad case of vertigo and it continued into the pandemic years. It takes a crew of five working in close quarters with me to help enable these signing sessions, and we could not find a safe and workable way to complete what I needed to do while the virus was raging. So, during the pandemic, it was impossible to sign anything and the vertigo didn’t help. With contractual deadlines looming, the idea of \u200b\u200busing an auto-pen was suggested to me, along with the assurance that this kind of thing is done ‘all the time’ in the art and literary worlds.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n
\tDylan’s statement concludes, \u201cUsing a machine was an error in judgment and I want to rectify it immediately. I’m working with Simon & Schuster and my gallery partners to do just that. With my deepest regrets, Bob Dylan.\u201d<\/p>\n\n
\n
\tIt’s unknown whether plans to address the artwork situation would involve refunds \u2014 which could conceivably run into at least hundreds of thousands of dollars \u2014 or the less costly option of providing replacement prints that are truly hand-signed, if Dylan is now up to it \u2014 or some other unknown option. The \u201cPhilosophy of Modern Song\u201d snafu, meanwhile, has already been addressed, with customers who bought the $600 limited edition of 900 books having already been refunded this week by Simon & Schuster.<\/p>\n
\n
\tDylan’s reps did not immediately respond to a request for further comment.<\/p>\n
\n
\tCastle Galleries’ statement, also posted on Facebook, reads: \u201cWe were informed late yesterday that during the Covid 19 pandemic Bob Dylan used an autopen to sign several of his limited edition prints rather than his usual hand signature. These editions are: The Retrospectrum Collection prints and the Sunset, Monument Valley print which were released by us this year. We can confirm that all other editions were individually hand signed by Bob Dylan himself.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n
\tThe gallery’s statement continues: \u201cWe were entirely unaware of the use of autopen on these particular prints, and we sincerely apologize for the disappointment this may cause. We will be reaching out to each and every one of our collectors who purchased any print from the above editions to offer a solution to fully rectify the matter. Details on how we intend to resolve this matter will follow shortly.\u201d<\/p>\n