New Zealand’s secondary art market is booming – now artists want a share

Without a resale royalty scheme, struggling artists are missing out on much needed money for their work

This month New Zealand artist Ayesha Green watched in surprise as one of her artworks fetched $48,000 at auction - $29,000 more than she sold it for just a year earlier. The hammer price was sizeable for an artist who describes herself as somewhere between emerging and mid-career, and if the country had a resale royalty scheme for artists in place, Green would have taken home a healthy paycheque to put towards her practice.

But, like all local artists whose work sells at auction, Green gets nothing.