Georges Rouault

Rouault passionately championed artists’ copyright and did much to strengthen the legal standing of creators working in various branches of the arts. After the early death of Ambroise Vollard in 1938, hundreds of Rouault’s unfinished and unsigned works passed into the hands of the dealer’s heirs. In response Rouault brought a landmark lawsuit against the Vollard heirs to recover his pictures. Although he was successful, he publicly and symbolically burned 315 of the 800 canvases he got back, on principle. It is estimated that works of art worth some 500 million dollars went up in flames.

From the page of The Old King