Milo’s artwork is always evolving and remains perpetually unfinished. You can live with an original through a lease, or collect a print. #UnendingArt
MD
About Art Leasing
Art leasing lets you live or work with original art for an agreed period. You choose a work, sign a short agreement, and pay a monthly fee based on the value of the piece. It suits homes, offices, studios, hotels and any space that changes over time.
Flexibility
Choose a term from one month to a year. When it ends you can renew, exchange the work for another, buy it or return it. Each lease is set up around your space and your needs.
A better workspace
Original art gives a room character and gives people something to look at and talk about. Clients notice it, and staff work in a more interesting place. The research below supports this.
Lower upfront cost
A lease spreads the cost into steady payments and keeps your capital free for other uses. For a business, lease payments may be deductible as a business expense. See Leasing and Tax in Canada below, and confirm with your accountant.
A path to ownership
Living with a work is the best way to know whether it belongs with you. If you decide to buy a leased work, 50% of the lease fees you paid for it come off the price.
Who can lease?
Anyone. Collectors, companies, organizations, the self-employed and private individuals are all welcome.
Is a down payment required?
A security deposit is paid before delivery. The amount is set for each lease and listed in Schedule A of the agreement. It is returned when the artwork comes back in its original condition.
How Art Leasing Works
Milo Dlouhy leases art to businesses and private owners internationally. 50% of the lease fees paid on a work can be applied to its purchase price. Select a piece and send a request or questions to milo@milostate.com.
The steps
- Choose a work from the Artwork archive.
- Fill in and sign the Art Leasing Agreement online. It takes a few minutes.
- Milo reviews your request and countersigns. He sends Schedule A, which lists the artwork, its current value and the security deposit.
- Pay the deposit and the first billing period through a secure payment link.
- The artwork is delivered and installed, or you collect it yourself.
- At the end of the term you can renew, exchange the work, buy it or return it.
What is the cost of leasing art?
Lease fees are a monthly percentage of the artwork’s current value. A longer term has a lower rate.
| Term | Billed | Monthly rate |
|---|---|---|
| Month to month | Monthly | 4% |
| 3 months | Every 3 months | 3.5% |
| 6 months | Every 6 months | 3% |
| 12 months | Every 12 months | 2.5% |
For example, a work valued at $5,000 on a 12-month lease costs $125 a month. Fees are plus GST where it applies.
When is my bill due?
Fees are billed in advance on the first day of each billing period. The first billing period is paid in full before the artwork is delivered.
How will I be billed?
You receive a secure payment link from the studio. Your card is kept on file with the payment processor for the length of the lease. The studio never sees or stores your card number, and the agreement form never asks for it.
How long does a lease last, and how do I end it?
You choose month to month, 3, 6 or 12 months. At the end of each term the lease renews on the same terms. After the first term, either of us can end it with 30 days’ written notice, and email counts. The artwork then comes back within 14 days.
Am I allowed to sell the artwork that I have leased?
No. The artwork belongs to the Artist for the whole lease.
Can I later buy the artwork that I have leased?
Yes. You can buy a leased work at its current value at any time during the lease, and 50% of the lease fees you paid for that work come off the price.
NOTE: If a purchase is made, the Artist (Milo Dlouhy) requests one final possession of the work, for documentation purposes and to finalize the artwork with a signature and possibly some additional alterations if deemed necessary.
Can I exchange the artwork?
Yes. After the first term you can exchange it for another available work under the same agreement.
Are there any additional fees?
A security deposit is paid before delivery and returned within 14 days after the artwork comes back in its original condition. Transport and installation are quoted with each lease. You may also collect and install the work yourself.
Is insurance needed for the leased artwork?
Yes. You are responsible for the artwork from delivery until its return, and your insurance covers it at its current value. Most home and business policies can add a leased artwork with a short call to your broker.
How do I care for the artwork?
Keep it indoors, away from direct sunlight, heat and damp. Leave cleaning, framing and repairs to the Artist, and tell the studio before moving the work to a new location.
What makes leasing a Milo Dlouhy work different?
The artworks are ongoing and never finished. By arrangement with you, Milo may visit to continue working on a leased piece, or offer to exchange it for a later state of the same work. You are free to accept or decline each time. The work on your wall is part of a living process.
Art at Work
Research supports what most people sense in a room with art. In studies at the University of Exeter, people working in spaces enriched with art or plants were 17% more productive than those in bare spaces (source). In a UK survey of 3,250 office workers commissioned by Brookfield Properties, 69% of those with art in their workplace said it contributed to their well-being (source).
Leasing and Tax in Canada
For a Canadian business, payments to rent artwork for its premises can generally be claimed as a business expense. A business that buys original art has a second route: a work that costs $200 or more, made by an artist who was a Canadian citizen or permanent resident at the time, can be depreciated at 20% a year under Capital Cost Allowance Class 8 when it is displayed in the place of business. Every situation is different, so please confirm the treatment with your accountant.