Artists: contact your representative!

There is currently a bill in Congress to change the way tax deductions for donated artwork work. Currently, if you donate a work of art to a museum, library, or other non-profit organization, you can only deduct the value of the materials. That means that the 40 hours you spent with planning, construction, tweaking those details etc. are not compensated when you donate it. If you're an established artist with a high going value for your work, that doesn't matter. Only the materials can be deducted.

This bill will change that so that the fair market value is able to be deducted. This would make it feasible for artists to donate their work to non-profit institutions, so that the public would get a better chance at seeing them. If you're an artist, you know an artist or you just like art, you should contact your representative and encourage them to support H.R. 1524.

The Advocate for the Arts website has a handy little form that you can simply enter your e-mail address, name and such and will send a e-mail to them automatically with your name attached. It's very easy to use and only takes a minute. I've already done so myself.

Remember, the squeaky wheel gets the grease...