POLICY REGARDING THE ISSUING OF CERTIFICATES
Each of Carl Andre's sculptures must be accompanied by an original certificate issued by the artist which accompanies that work at each change of ownership. This certificate is the proof that it is a work created by Carl Andre and constitutes his signature and the only authentification of the sculpture. Sculptures without the original document issued by Carl Andre or the Carl Andre and Melissa L Kretschmer Foundation have no standing as works of Carl Andre.
Certificates for works are issued only after Carl Andre or the Foundation receives, in full, the proceeds from the sale of the work or, in the case that the work has been gifted, immediately after the work has been received by the giftee. In the event that an owner steps forward with a sculpture that has prevoiusly never been accompanied by one, a certificate may be issued after the following conditions have been met:
1. A complete provenance of the work in question must be supplied. This provenance must include a signed statement confirming the transfer of titlefrom each of the successive owners.
2. Carl Andre or a representative of the Carl Andre and Melissa L. Kretschmer Foundation must inspect the work.
CONDITIONS FOR THE REPLACEMENT OF LOST CERTIFICATES
If a certficate is lost, a statement of authenticity may be issued. Such a statement in no way constitutes an original certificate and may not be deemed or utilized as one. An original certificate is issued only once to the first owner and can never be replaced with another unique certificate. In the event that a statement of authenticity is requested, the following conditions must be met before it is issued:
1. A complete provenance of the work in question must be supplied. This provenance must include a signed statement confirming the transfer of title and certificate from each of the successive owners.
2. Carl Andre or a representative of the Carl Andre and Melissa L. Kretschmer Foundation must inspect the work.
3. A fee of two one-ounce Canadian gold Maple Leaf coins for issuing the first statement of authenticity, three such coins for the second, four coins for the third and so on, plus expenses, is payable to Carl Andre or the Carl Andre and Melissa L. Kretschmer Foundation. Such coins can easily be found and obtained online.
CONDITIONS FOR THE REPLACEMENT OF MATERIALS
In the event that the rightful owner of a work by Carl Andre feels it is necessary to replace the original material for reasons of weathering, damage, loss, etc., Carl Andre or a representative of the Carl Andre and Melissa L. Kretschmer Foundation must be consulted. Either Carl or a representative of the Foundation will be the sole determiner as to whether or not the material can be or will be replaced. Neither Carl Andre nor the Foundation is responsible for any form of abuse, loss, extreme damage or weathering incurred upon the work while in the possession of the owner.
Upon request to replace the materials the following steps must be taken:
1. A copy of the original certificate for the work must be provided.
2. Carl Andre or a representative of the Foundation must inspect the work.
3. Samples of replacement materials must be provided for approval.
4. A secondary inspection of the work installed in its new material
must be made by Carl Andre or the representative.
5. The original certificate must be provided so that it can be
amended to reflect the change in materials.
6. The Registry must be notified and provided with a new photograph of the work.
7. Carl Andre or the representative must be reimbursed for any and all
travel expenses incurred while inspecting the work.
CLEANING MATERIALS
In general no works of Carl Andre should ever be ground down or abraded in any way. Works consisting of metal units can however be cleaned with a soft cloth and light machine oil or gun oil. While not required exclusively, an example of such an oil is 3-IN-ONE Oil. Inquiries regarding the cleaning of all other materials must be addressed to Carl Andre or the Carl Andre and Melissa L. Kretschmer Foundation. Neither Carl nor the Foundation is responsible for any damage incurred by improper cleaning or the mishandling of materials.
INTEGRITY OF THE REGISTRY
To ensure the integrity of the confidential registry of the extant sculptures of Carl Andre, it is necessary to identify the owners of all works. Collectors may choose to be listed anonymously in the published catalogue derived from the registry. However, works which are owned by collectors who refuse to identify themselves for inclusion in the confidential registry will be deleted from the published catalogue. Information supplied to the confidential registry is never used for commercial purposes.
STATEMENT CONCERNING THE MEASUREMENTS OF CARL ANDRE SCULPTURES
In the Carl Andre Registry measurement conversion issues may create small discrepancies between the measurements indicated on the certificate and the other measurements of the sculpture. Typically, material originating in Europe will have measurements expressed in the metric system while those originating in the U.S. will have measurements expressed in the English system. Depending on the origin of the material, it may be the case that the Registry determines that the measurements of a work are more naturally expressed in one system over the other and will use the conversion. In so doing any discrepancies normally remain in the range of 2-3 mm (or 1/10 of an inch) or within the margin or error. In order to avoid any future controvercy, all certificates issued must adhere to the same measurements as appear in the Registry and cannot otherwise diverge.