Bob Dylan issued a rare public statement Friday night acknowledging that he “regrets” he made an “error in judgment” in using machine technology to put duplicate signatures on works of art and books that have been advertised and sold as hand-signed over the past three years.
He says the use of automated signatures has only happened since 2019, when he got a daze, and during the pandemic, when he wasn’t able to help staff sign by hand which he had previously done. It’s been “emphasized that this sort of thing is done ‘all the time’ in the art world and literature,” says Dylan. Now that it’s out and sparking controversy, the singer-songwriter says, “I want to get it right right away. I’m working with Simon & Schuster and my gallery partners to do just that.”
Other musicians have been suspected of using an automated system of hand-signed items, and in rare cases even owned that, but others didn’t sell art prints that routinely sell for $3,000 to $15,000, as Dylan’s art prints do. Dylan’s statement that he used the auto-opener to sign artwork follows Simon & Schuster’s admission one week earlier that a batch of $600 of signed copies of Dylan’s new book, “Philosophy of Modern Song,” had been auto-signed, with refunds offered at immediately.
UK-based Castle Galleries, which specializes in selling Dylan art prints, issued a statement on Saturday saying it is “contacting all of our collectors who have purchased any prints of the (relevant) issues to offer a solution to make it all right.”
Dylan’s statement, posted on his Facebook account, says he hand-signed everything that was announced as such through 2019. It reads as follows:
“For my fans and followers, I have learned that there has been some controversy over signatures on some of my recent art prints and on a limited edition Modern Song Philosophy. I have hand-signed every art print over the years, and there has never been an issue,” he begins. Statement.
However, in 2019 I had a bad case of vertigo and it continued into the pandemic years. It takes a crew of five working in close quarters with me to help enable these autograph sessions, and we couldn’t find a safe and practical way to complete what I needed to do during an outbreak. Therefore, during the epidemic, it was impossible to sign anything and the vertigo did not help. As contractual deadlines approached, the idea of the automatic pen was suggested, along with the assertion that this sort of thing is done “all the time” in the world of art and literature.
Dylan’s statement concludes, “Using a machine was an error of judgment that I want to correct immediately. I am working with Simon & Schuster and my gallery partners to do just that. With my deepest regrets, Bob Dylan.”
It’s unknown if plans to address the art situation will include refunds — which are likely to run into the hundreds of thousands of dollars at least — or the less expensive option of offering replacement hand-signed prints, if Dylan is now up to it, or some other option. The topic of “modern song philosophy” has already been addressed, as Simon & Schuster is refunding customers who bought the $600 limited edition of 900 books this week.
Dylan’s reps did not immediately respond to a request for further comment.
Castle Galleries’ statement, also posted to Facebook, read: “We were informed late yesterday that during the Covid 19 pandemic, Bob Dylan has used an automated device to sign many of his limited editions rather than his usual hand-signature. These releases are: “Retrospectrum collection prints and Sunset, Monument Valley prints released by us this year. We can confirm that all other editions were hand-signed by Bob Dylan himself.”
The gallery statement continues: “We were completely unaware of the use of the ‘auto-open’ feature on these specific prints, and we sincerely apologize for the disappointment this may cause. We will be reaching out to each and every one of our collectors who have purchased any print of the aforementioned editions to offer a solution. To fully rectify the matter. Details of how we intend to resolve this issue will follow shortly.”
As of Sunday morning in the US prints of hundreds of different Dylan paintings were still being advertised on the Castle Galleries website and, as “hand signed”, range in price from about £2,700 for the lowest-priced single print to £14,500.00. (or about $17,500, SE) for a boxed set of six. Many, if not most, of these items predate the period when the singer-artist says he began using the machine’s technology, but collectors will no doubt scramble to see which side of the division their earlier purchases reach.
The controversy surrounding Dylan’s use of auto-opening for items declared as “hand-signed” was amplified by the extent to which his book’s publisher went to great lengths to validate the signatures, even sending the limited edition $600 “Philosophy of Modern Songs” books accompanied by an authenticity letter. Signed by the publisher.Refund requests were initially denied, as Simon & Schuster continued to prove the signatures were authentic, before admitting “mistake” on November 20 and refunding hundreds of thousands of dollars in purchases last week.
Not all fans are upset about the autographs being revealed. In Dylan’s Facebook post expressing regret about auto-signs, the responses so far have been in favor of the singer, saying that his bisexuality wasn’t much of an issue to begin with and/or that he did something matter-of-fact in a public apology.
Autograph Live was integral in keeping track of what turned out to be easily detectable duplicate signatures on the books, though 17 different signature types were eventually discovered as users of the site compared notes and screenshots.
Soon after duplicates of the book appeared, users began comparing signatures on their more expensive art prints, and apparently found some matching ones, too… albeit in what might be called an automatic pencil. The general consensus in the forums so far seems to be to believe that what Dylan said in his Facebook statement is true – prints signed prior to 2019 or 2020 appear to have been signed individually.
Dylan’s statement that he suffers from vertigo is the first time this has been revealed to the public. The singer continues to be active, having resumed his solid touring routine with a critically acclaimed tour.
The post that has become a resource for those looking to compare notes on machine-generated signatures was created by Jason Hicks, who told diverse“Celebrities need to learn a lesson to stop this autoplay practice for good, for the sake of our hobby. I hate autoplay with a passion, which is why I have spent countless hours creating this post, comparing photos and curating as much information as possible. … I have It’s been a sore thumb in this hobby since before I was even born. If autoplay technology advances, there is a chance it could become undetectable, which is why we need to end its use as soon as possible.”
Van Morrison has recently been accused in forums of using an auto-opening system to sign CDs, although his management has issued a statement denying this. However, Sinead O’Connor owned up to doing so through her signed memo, without any apology. Either way, the disputed items sold for less than $50, which limited the potential for an uproar.
O’Connor said, “Autographed books, I signed using the autograph stamp because I was in no position to hand over my name ten thousand times, which is the number I was asked to sign. My son was all right as I was. So I stamped them myself. Which is my autograph.” However, many retailers pulled O’Connor’s “signed” books, which were selling for about $30, from sale.
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