Certificates
Cruz-Diez gave authorization to the Cruz-Diez Foundation, in collaboration with the Cruz-Diez workshops, to deliver certificates dictated by the certification committee confirming exclusive authorship of works created by the artist.
The Cruz-Diez Foundation refer to Cruz-Diez’s archives, where all blueprints and original plans are kept, prior to making a decision. This enables the certificates committee to identify genuine pieces. A fee is payable to cover the cost of investigation, from which will come the possibility of obtaining a certificate. If a piece is deemed authentic the certificates committee will then issue a certificate of authenticity. Each certificate is unique and copies are not allowed.
If you own a Cruz-Diez artwork and would like to acquire a certificate, please download and complete our application form. You should also refer to the General Conditions for the Authentication.
Preservation
The preservation and restoration of Cruz-Diez’s works is an important part of the Cruz-Diez Foundation’s mission. Rather than following the rule that it is the artist’s hand on the canvas that must be preserved, for Cruz-Diez, as it was for his contemporaries, it is important that the result is maintained. Cruz-Diez achieved his result through the use of repeated modules that must be identical, therefore these modules must be preserved.
In the 1960s artists were experimenting with new ways of creating paintings, breaking the boundaries between 2D and 3D by making volume using new materials rather than oil or gouache. The use of materials such as acrylic, metal, wood, silkscreen, PVC and mechanical workings means that some of the artworks produced have not aged well. This is why Cruz-Diez kept meticulous archives detailing exactly how the artworks must look upon completion.
All of the plans and materials needed for restoration can be found in Cruz-Diez’s workshops. This ensures their preservation as the artist intended. Where previously used materials have been surpassed by modern equivalents, Cruz-Diez’s workshops are best placed to make these alterations. The result is always identical in appearance to that of the original.
These same principles apply to Cruz-Diez’s architectural structures. Although Cruz-Diez always tried to find the best materials that would last, inevitable color fading and material erosion due to external elements means that these too must be restored. The Cruz-Diez Foundation advises owners of a Cruz-Diez artwork to exercise responsible care and contact us directly with regards to maintenance requests.
This new concept of restoration for contemporary art came to the attention of The Ecole du Louvre, who visited Atelier Cruz-Diez Paris to understand how it works.
