Assistance - FAQ

ARTactif, the visual directory of contemporary arts, is at the permanent service of all art amateurs, professionals or individuals, from all over the world. It is a dynamic and interactive repertoire. A tool for international promotion, it proposes a wide range of services to bring visual artists and their public together.
The consultation of the directory is free.
The site has been conceived so that each artist can manage his/her works and informations with complete freedom.

The contents (texts, photos, etc.) you upload to the ARTactif website through the different applications and forms will be under your responsibility and at your own risk.
You refuse to publish insulting, obscene, coarse, defamatory, threatening, sexual contents or any type of message which may be against the current laws in force. It is strictly forbidden to report the name of a society, an enterprise or an individual in order to criticize its/his practices. Otherwise you may be prosecuted for defamation.
You acknowledge and accept that the administrators, moderators or any other responsible of the site may delete, move or block any content at any time.
The administrators and moderators of the site will make the best of their efforts to delete or block as soon as possible any reprehensible message, even though it is impossible to review all the pages or messages.
You agree that the texts and images on the web site give the opinion and the point of view of the authors. The administrators and moderators may give their opinion only about the contents that they publish by their own. Consequently, the administrators and moderators are not responsible for the contents published by the authors.
You agree to compensate ARTactif, or its representatives, for any lawsuit or legal action brought by a third party if it is the result of your contents, your misuse of the site or the violation of the rights or conditions of a person.

When you register, you agree and accept the conditions above mentioned

ARTactif reduces all intermediate costs in order to favour your exchanges.The on-line Sales Space establishes a direct contact between buyers and sellers in the best conditions of price and security.

The sales space is open to everybody : artists, galleries or private individuals who wish to sell their works, reproductions or other artistic creations in a fair trade spirit. ARTactif gives you the possibility to manage your shop at a distance and with complete freedom.

ARTactif is a neutral intermediate between the sellers of artwork and the buyers. We help to secure the transaction between the two parties.Explications:

A person decides to propose his artwork in the "selling department" of ARTactif a cybernaut is interested by one or more artworks that are exhibited. He can order online.

ARTactif receives the order, contacts the seller and transfers the order with the details of the buyer so that the seller can send him the order.

The buyer pays the price of the sale to ARTactif whom as an intermediate banks the sum. It's only when the buyer confirms reception of the products he has chosen, that ARTactif pays the amount of the order to the seller.

This system permits one to avoid the fraudulent sellers cashing in a price of sale just before "disappearing" or a buyer receiving the order and refusing to pay.

The transaction is effected clearly; ARTactif communicates the address of the buyer to the seller. The seller directly sends to the buyer. Once the buyer receives his order, Artactif pays the seller the price of the sale minus Artactifs commission.

On ARTactif, the sellers account and buyers account are separate, so you can modify or cancel one without affecting the other. You can have an account seller and/or an account buyer and each is distinct.

You can use the same username and password for your two accounts. In order to access to your client account, click on the tab "Orders Follow-up". For an access as a seller, click on "member" or "Sales space".

To assure things are clear and completely understood between the seller and the buyer, ARTactif defines the rules and the obligations to respect so that each party is satisfied with the transaction.
Click on the link "GENERAL CONDITIONS" to familiarize with the subscription conditions and particular obligations for the sellers.

We offer a free registration to all those who want to join us. During 3 months, you will benefit from all the functions in the directory with no obligation to pay later. That is the « Discovery » programme. After 3 months, your presence becomes « passive ».
In order to take all the advantages of the directory, the « Active » programme is ideal. It only costs 48 € ATI for a whole year, and it allows you the access to many options. See general price .

The subscription to the "Selling department" isn't obligatory for the visitors or the people who wish to buy the artwork on the site.
However, if you wish to sell artwork or other artistic products on the net you need to be subscribed, we then have all the information necessary to pay you on sale, advise you and accompany you step by step.

A subscription form can be found in the "selling department". Fill it in and validate your personal information for the account that you wish to open. Don't forget to memorize your "Identification code" and "Password", thanks to these you will not need to renew the subscription form. This information is strictly personal and confidential. Do not divulge it to anyone.

For those who do not have computer material or who wish to confide the subscription and the installation of artwork online to the ARTactif team, a subscription form can be sent to you. A printable version can be found in the section "Selling department". ARTactif will only bill the technical fees, photo work and online installation. (See prices)

If you have already completed a subscription form and you've forgotten your password, click on the link "I've forgotten my password". A window will then open and ask you to input your email address and to validate. Your pas sword will then be sent directly to your letterbox. You just have to consult your letterbox to receive it. Click the link on the page « member ».

If you want to modify your personal details, you must go to your Management Space (tab « Member »). Clicking on the tab « Identity », the questionnaire you filled in when you registered will appear, so that you can update your details.

If you no longer wish to be registered and you possess an account in the selling department of ARTactif, you can notify us of the cancellation of your account:

a) Directly online in your reserved space click on the link "cancel my account",
b) By e-mail at contact@artactif.com ,
c) By post at the address: ARTactif - BP 15 - 85610 CUGAND (FRANCE),
d) By telephone or fax at +33 (0) 2 51 43 65 65.

Attention however, when you cancel your account your personal details are deleted, as well as the pictures of artwork that you have registered. If you wish to reapply, you must completely refill all the stages of subscription and the redo all online documents.
Please note that it is also possible to be registered in ARTactif for free ; the paying option only gives you new advantages.

The same as the subscription, the cancellation of your subscription to ARTactif is FREE.

In order to put your works on-line, you must go to the section « Management » (« Member » tab). If you are not registered yet, click on « New Inscription » to create your account.
With your username and password, you will be able to access to your personal and confidential account. There, you have the possibility to :
- modify your information or contact details,
- add / modify / delete your works, texts and/or adverts...

It is easy and effective ! You have just to follow the instructions of each stage. An on-line help is related to each form.
The edition of works is immediate and you will be able then to control their display. Of course, you will have the possibility to modify all the information, add or remove the works afterwards.

ARTactif has reserved the right not to publish or to remove from the directory the products (or informations) having no relationship with or being opposed to the web site’s editorial policy.

The number of works presented is not limited. You can present as many as you want and manage them with complete freedom. There are also several functions allowing you to temporarily remove them from sale without losing the informations.

The option Multiple Themes is indispensable in order to manage your works by categories. It allows artists to create as many themes as they wish in order to class their works according to genre, period, theme, etc…(for instance : I am a painter and sculptor, I would like to class my works by specialities).

I you do not want to waste your time in the process, we recommend you to prepare the following documents in advance :

Photographs of the works : To optimise the transfer of your photos they shouldn't be bigger than 1000 Ko. To give the best presentation of you artwork that you wish to put online, the size of the photos mustn't be under 400 pixels (or more if there is centring to do) and not over 800 pixels. Save your photos in the format .JPG in superior quality.

Texts : Prepare in advance your texts: biographies, representations, press cuttings.type them before, and then you can transfer them by doing a simple copy-paste on the online form.
Condense your presentation. You mustn't want to say everything and risk being judged before being contacted!

The ARTactif directory deals with 80 languages. From the tab « texts » of your Management Space, select the language and transfer your texts in copy and paste. The symbol flags will be automatically associated to each language.

If you haven't the computer material or if you prefer to use the services of ARTactif, you just have to send us your order (subscription, exhibition, installation on line...) and/or your documents (texts, photos...) to ARTactif- BP 15 - 85610 CUGAND (FRANCE).

ARTactif will then optimise your photos, install your artwork online and type up the texts, descriptions and titles. The corresponding prices for these services can be found in the section prices.

For each photo, don't forget to give the precise title of the artwork, the technique used, the support, the size as well as the price of sale and the postage fees for the forwarding.

Several payment methods are available so that you can choose the easiest and cheapest for you : On-line secured payment, When selecting the on-line secured payment, you are directed towards the e-transactions server of the Crédit-Agricole bank. The contact is secured via the security protocol SSL (Secure Socket Layer) which allows the cryptage of the data on the card provided by the holder. The transaction happens only between yourself and the bank with no possibility of external interference. (click here to go to the on-line payment page). International transfer payment IBAN, For an international SWIFT transfer, please download our IBAN clicking on the icon below (format .PDF ) :
	Print the document and communicate it, as well as the amount, to your bank in order to execute the transfer. This process costs 8 euros more than the on-line payment process. Please add this amount to the total sum to pay.
Bank check payment in Euros, exclusively reserved to account holders of French banks, Bank check payment is only possible for the Euro zone. Please send your chek bearing the name of ARTactif to the following address : ARTactif - 34, impasse de l'ébaupin - 85610 CUGAND - FRANCE Direct debit payment in several times, This process is only possible for the amounts over 12 euros a month and on banks domiciled in France. For a direct debit payment, download our Direct Debit Autorisation Form clicking on the icon below (format .PDF ) :
	Print the document, fill it in and send it back to us duly signed, together with your bank account details, postal details or savings bank details.
Direct debit payments will be executed the 10th of the concerned month or trimester for a minimum period of one year. At the end of the year, you will be able to suspend your subscription and direct debit payments at any time, just by requesting it and giving an advance notice of one month minimum.

You have the possibility to access to all the works on sale of the site, on the page « Sales ». A search engine will help you to find the work you want with a selection according to style, price, height or key words.

Key words :
Enter one or several key words on the search engine window and click on « Search… ». The site will show you the list of the articles whose product file card contains those key words. In order to refine your search, enter more key words or specify your criteria on the scrolling menus of the engine.

Criteria :
You can consult the list of the works according to their style (paintings, sculptures, lithographies, books,…), their price or their height. For a more refined search, you can use the key words at the same time that the different criteria (for instance : I am looking for an abstract painting of 1 metre height, from 2,000 to 3,000 euros).

Once you have selected the work, click on the button « Order » of the corresponding page in order to add it to your shopping basket (accessible through the second line of tabs at the top of the site). Click on the button « Order » in the shopping basket to validate your order, then follow the instructions on the screen.

ARTactif accept payments by credit card, cheque or transfer .
The payment is made up of the price of the articles in your basket to which is added the corresponding postage fees .
When you confirm your order and pay, this is the following sequence of operations :

- The Bank of ARTactif verifies that the credit card used is valid,
- When the transaction is confirmed and recorded, ARTactif sends your order and your details to the Seller so that he can affect the delivery. We conserve your payment in a dedicated account until you acknowledge the receipt of your purchase.
- We do not send the payment to the seller until you have received your purchase .

For more detail see "General conditions /Sales and effects of the sale".
At no time do ARTactif or the Seller have access to your credit card information .

The total delays on delivery depend on the speed that the Seller confirms the order, the rapidity that he sends it to you and the delay of the forwarding of the package.

If the Seller cannot deliver by return, he must inform us of the eventual delay. If you don't agree to the delay, the sale may be cancelled and your purchase reimbursed.

The date of sending of the package, type of forwarding and eventually the details of transporters will be sent to the Seller via the site ARTactif .

When you receive your order, we would like you to confirm the reception in a maximum of 2 days.

In a minority of cases, it may happen that the delivery takes longer than foreseen. If 3 weeks after your purchase (20 days) you are without news of your delivery, please contact us using the section "Follow-up Order". We will then take the actions necessary to inform you, satisfy you or reimburse you. .

For more details see "General conditions /Specific obligations of the Buyer"

ARTactif places itself as a « neutral » intermediate between the Buyer and the Seller (see basic principle) to avoid the problems linked to transactions between private individuals .

1 - Problèmes sur la nature ou la qualité des articles
If the article that you receive is different than the one you ordered, if it's an illicit copy or if the level of quality is visibly different than the one advertised, you can benefit from a full refund. To do that you must within the week (8 days) that follow the date of receipt, make a claim directly to the Seller by registered letter with acknowledgement receipt, send a copy to Artactif and inform the site. You will then receive all the instructions necessary to return the article to the Seller and to be refunded.

The section "Follow-up order" is installed on the site so you can follow the progress of your order and that you can confirm the different stages of the transaction (delivery , receipt, payment , etc.) if a problem arises, don't hesitate to contact us .

2 - Returns /litigation
To be acceptable, the return must be from a complaint and a prior agreement. Except contrary arrangements with the Seller at the time of the complaint, return postage fees are to be paid by the Buyer .For more details see "General conditions /Returns - litigation".

The laws on the transport of merchandise are very precise. They say that the merchandise sent travels at the risk of the sender, even if it is sent carriage free. You must therefore verify the merchandise before signing the delivery note .

When you receive the packages, verify immediately in front of the delivery man the conformity of the reference numbers, quantity of packages, their physical state and their contents should correspond to what is written on the delivery note .

If a package arrives damaged, write it on the delivery note « Arrived in bad condition, accepted subject to opening ». If you receive a damaged item, inform the transporters within 48 hours, by registered letter and note in our "follow-up order" stipulating the nature of the damage (damp, ripped, cracked, etc.) .

In case of doubt or of obvious damage, refuse the merchandise and add by hand dated detailed and explicit legal reserves on the delivery note of the transporters. Only the damages mentioned on the delivery note will be considered as existent at the moment of delivery .

The delivery man cannot under any pretext, refuse the right to verify the merchandise. If he declines, you can write all details on the delivery note and refuse the delivery.
All merchandise accepted without legal reserves or with non significant legal reserves, is considered as accepted, received and excluded from all claims towards the transporters. However, the receiver has three days after the delivery (not including bank holidays) to notify the transporters by registered letter of an eventual motivated claim which could lead on to a legal expertise.

If you are absent on the day of the delivery, you will receive a note in you letter box. Contact the transport company and organise a new date of delivery.

In order to assure the correct performance of the process, we would ask you to inform our services at least minimally. The section « Orders Follow-up » allows you to inform us :
- about the receipt of the parcel(s),
- about the possible reservations and, of course, about your full satisfaction.

N.B. : We will only send the money to the seller after you acknowledege receipt of the order.
Consult the whole process in "General Conditions".

If the article you receive is different from the one you have ordered (if it is in fact an illegal copy or if it is damaged,…) you will be refunded the total amount of your purchase. For this, you will have to make a complaint, sending directly to the Seller a registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt with a copy to ARTactif, within a maximum period of 8 days after the reception of your order. You will then receive all the instructions to send the article to the Seller as well as to get the refund.

If you have any complaints, you can also go to the section « Orders Follow-up » and fill in the form provided. However, if you wish to communicate all that information by other means, you can always contact us at :
Security.

In the space "Follow-up order", you can consult the history of a transaction. Fill in the box « identification » and the « Order No » then validate. A page shows the different steps that have been done since the order was placed .

You can also participate online by giving the information necessary for the treatment of the transaction.

To assure the proper treatment of the transaction, we would ask you to keep are services up to date. The section "Follow-up Order" permits you to inform us :
- Of the costs of sending, to confirm the eventual delays of delivery,
- Of the date the order was sent,
- Of the receipt of payment.

If the article that you receive is different than the one you ordered (if it's an illicit copy or if the level of quality is visibly different.) you can benefit from a full refund. To do this you must within the week (8 days) that follows the date of receipt, make a claim directly to the Seller by registered letter with acknowledgement receipt and send a copy to ARTactif and inform the site. You will then receive all the instructions necessary to return the article to the seller and to be refunded.

If you have a complaint to make you may do so in the section "Follow-up order" using the appropriate form. If you wish however to contact us by a different means you can contact us by using the coordinates below .

When ARTactif sends you the details of the Buyer, you have 8 working days to send, at your expense the product to the Buyer (see the section below, "all about postage fees") .

To protect the artwork that you send against weather damage, corrosion, loading accidents, dangers of transport and storage, vibrations or shocks, etc..You must wrap them with the appropriate material. The products must be sealed, wrapped, marked, and generally prepared for forwarding conforming to commercial usage, acceptable for the transporters at minimum costs, adapted to assure the arrival of the articles in good condition to their destination.

Think about writing on the packaging all information necessary for the safe delivery of the packet; names and addresses respective to the sender and consignee, the order number, the date of forwarding, « handle with care », top and bottom, how to pick it up, manipulation and transport specifications, identify and mark clearly the articles that need extra attention, specific storage and /or conditions of transport, and indicate the precautions to take, if necessary.

For valuable artworks, please do not hesitate to take out a suitable insurance covering in declared value the article until it's delivery to the consignee.

When you deliver the products, you must specify in the section "Follow-up Order" the date and the complete reference of the order, the full address of the consignee, a detailed description of the products, the total quantity of packages sent, the identification in gross and net weight of each package and the type of transport used.

The postage fees are paid by the Seller.

ARTactif makes an estimation of post and package charges by default, in order to simplify the estimation of the probable costs of shipment according to weight, destination and value of the objects. This estimation is simply indicative. We cannot be considered responsible if the real costs are eventually higher. Please take cognizance of the reckoner by default clicking here. If this reckoner did not correspond with the reality of your consigments, you have the possibility to enter a fixed price of carriage ticking : "Fixed price of carriage”.
The online estimation; based on the reckoner of the French Post Office remains valid only for the parcels under 30 kgs. The declared value is only applicable to a limited number of countries.

It is your duty to calculate and to enter the amount so that they are automatically added at the time the buyer makes the order. In that case, they will be integrated to the total amount to pay.

After validation of the transaction (see section "Delays of payment"), ARTactif sends you the price of the order received from the buyer. From this price ARTactif deducts the fees corresponding to the payment of their services (see section "Costs")

The payment intervenes after the delivery by the transporters .

When the buyer acknowledges receipt of the article, ARTactif will inform you by email and will ask you how you wish to be paid (Cheque, transfer.). Then count a maximum of 3 working days for ARTactif to effect your payment.

For more details see "General conditions /Sales and financial arrangements".

Once that you have sent the product, you must fill in the section "FOLLOW-UP ORDER". Then you have to wait for the buyer to acknowledge receipt, to collect your payment from ARTactif.
Once the acknowledgment receipt has been received (or the transporters receipt), we will effect your payment . If however, the Buyer does not confirm the reception of the delivery within 6 weeks, the sale will be considered as complete and we will effect immediately your payment.

For more details see "General conditions /Sales and financial arrangements"

One can only put on sale the products or objects in relation to art. Therefore, all original artwork; paintings, water colours, drawing, studies, sculptures, ceramic, photographs. the limited series: lithograph, illumination... The editions: books, posters, cards, calendars, maybe placed in the space of sale ARTactif.

For more details see "General conditions /Sales and financial arrangements"

If a buyer contacts you without placing the order on-line in order to make a distance purchasing of a work, we recommend you to be careful. If you have the slightest doubt, you should demand him/her to pass through the on-line sales process : so you are totally sure to receive your payment. For further information about the on-line sales process, please consult the question « What happens if I have a buyer ? ».

When you click on the icon "Payment by Credit Card", you are directed to the server e-transactions of the bank Credit Agricole. The connection is protected via the protocol of security SSL (secure Socket Layer) which allows the encoding of all card details given by the card holder. The transaction is made exclusively between you and the bank without any possible external interference .

Despite what some people think, the electronic transfer of encoded information on the internet is extremely safe. Online payment today is reliable and of a superior security than certain other means like fax, telephone, etc ...

Our general conditions of sale and purchase are available for consultation on-line.

The on-line exhibition presents 12 works (or more) with a specially made and optimised page setup, easy to consult, diffuse or edit. Each new exhibition will benefit from a free advert on the home page during 4 weeks : this is the guarantee of 10,000 clicks (visitors) towards your works. >> More

NB : the option Golden Book is included in this offer.

In order to display an icon representing one of your works on the promotional spaces of the site, you must register to the Active Programme.
Go to your « Member » Space and click on the link « Modify my subscription ». The form at the bottom of the page will allow you to select the work you want to display and the kind of offer (« click » offer or « display » offer). Finally, click on « Order » to confirm your choice. You can also choose the image you want to be displayed.

NB : your icon will be added to the site after validation of your payment by the bank.

The on-line exhibition presents 12 works (or more) with a specially made and optimised page setup, easy to consult, diffuse or edit. Each new exhibition will benefit from a free advert on the home page during 4 weeks : this is the guarantee of 10,000 clicks (visitors) towards your works. >> More

NB : the option Golden Book is included in this offer.

The option Multiple Themes allows artists to create as many themes as they want to class their works by genre, period, theme, etc…(for instance : I am a painter and a sculptor, I would like to have my paintings arranged under a theme and my sculptures under a different one). >> More

The Golden Book works in the same way than a paper Golden Book : visitors can leave their opinions about your works in a space accessible from your pages. You can manage it on-line as well as eliminate undesirable messages. >> More

The domain name allows you to create an address of your choice (within the limits of availability) towards your ARTactif pages in .net, .com, .org or .fr (ex: www.myname.com). >> More

On-line forms sometimes refuse the importing of pictures.
This occurs if the files are too big (maximum allowed size 900 ko) or if one of your files is in other format than .JPG.
In case of trouble, you can also send us an e-mail with your documents enclosed, or also by mail (paper photos, ekta, CD,…). We will make the setting up for you.

Your web browser has perhaps kept your previous informations on the temporary memory of your computer. You can update your data by clicking on the menu or on the button « Update » of your browser (or key F5 on PC). If the problem persists, you can contact our assistance service at : 08 92 35 00 72 (0,34€/ minute).

Some functions are only available with the subscrition to the «Active » programme. When the expiration date is passed, they disappear automatically…but your information is not lost. You have just to reactivate your subscription and/or the concerned functions so that everything goes back to normality. 
You can manage your account with complete freedom from the « Member » Space.

Each interactive form contains a tab section for « Help ». Click on it to open the explanations and answers to your questions. This service is always available. It appears besides the form. It is easy and practical.

A phone assistance line is available at office hours :
- Monday to Friday from 9:00 am to 07:00 pm and Saturday morning from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm.
In case of trouble, please call : +(33) 08 92 35 00 72 (0,34 € la mn)

The Multimedia Company ARTactif is an independent organism registered in France under the SIRET number 488 846 858 00014 and specialized in communication, creation and editing of web sites. ARTactif is a registered trademark.
The ARTactif directory was created in 1998 by Joël RIVIERE, a commercial engineer (and a painter), as a response to the worries of his friends artists. Since its origins, the visual directory of Contemporary Arts helps the artists to establish new contacts and contributes to enhance the influence of their talent.

ARTactif comprises 2 complementary activities :
- the visual Directory of Contemporary Arts : www.artactif.com,
- the creation of customized web sites : www.artactif.net
ARTactif creates the engines of your performance. We master all the aspects of strategy, communication and marketing via the Internet : auditing, tree structure survey, design, editorial content, submission, positioning, publicity, etc… ARTactif is the partner you can consult for all your projects.

Everybody, individuals or professionals : Artists, Galleries, Companies, Collectivities, Institutions, Societies…already rely on ARTactif for their communication. Our team of Webmasters is always ready to listen and help you with all kind of specific developments, complex architectures, data base, electronic commerce, secured payment…and all dynamic applications. Do not hesitate to consult us.

ARTactif listens to you. You can join us or meet us at:

Postal address : ARTactif - BP 70327 - 85603 MONTAIGU cedex - France

On-line contact : form on the "Contact" page of the site ,

E-mail Contact: artactif@artactif.com ,

HELP and ASSISTANCE by phone : (33) 08 92 35 00 72 (0,34 ¤ la mn)

Switchboard : +33 (0)2 51 43 65 65