Privacy Policy

Last updated: 29 July 2026 and effective from that date

1. Who we are

This website is operated by David Rutlidge trading as Artistic Minds ("Artistic Minds", "we", "us" and "our").

Address: 26 Waterloo Road, Waterloo, Liverpool, L22 1RF, United Kingdom
Email: dave@artistic-minds.uk

For the purposes of UK data protection law, including the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, we are the data controller of personal data collected through this website.

2. What this policy covers

This policy explains how we collect, use, store and share personal data when:

• artists apply for and use an artist profile;
• visitors browse the website;
• users contact us by form or email;
• users subscribe to our mailing list through MailerLite;
• artwork and artist profiles are published and promoted, including through newsletters and Instagram;
• buyers and owners register or transfer ownership of a Certificate of Authenticity; and
• fees are invoiced and billing records are kept.

3. Personal data we collect

3.1 Artist accounts and profiles

If you apply for an artist account or use an approved artist profile, we may collect and process:

• your name, which may be a pseudonym;
• your private email address, used for administration and account communication;
• optional public profile details you choose to provide, such as public email address, telephone number, Instagram handle and website address;
• biography, artist statement and other profile text;
• artwork images and associated details such as titles, descriptions, categories and tags; and
• technical and account-related information such as login activity, IP address, security logs, a log of actions taken in the artist dashboard, and — where an administrator uses the "Act As" support feature to assist you — a log of that session.

Artists are responsible for ensuring that the information and content they upload is accurate, lawful and does not infringe the rights of others.

3.2 Artwork images and metadata

When artists upload artwork images, we process those files for display on the website. Image metadata is stripped from uploaded images before publication in order to reduce the risk of hidden personal data being disclosed.

3.3 Contact forms and enquiries

If you contact us by using a contact form or by email, we may collect your name, email address, telephone number if provided, and any other information you include in your message.

Contact form submissions are sent to the site administrator and may also be stored in the website database for up to 6 months for administration, security and follow-up purposes.

3.4 Mailing list subscriptions

If you sign up to our mailing list, we collect the information you submit, typically your email address and, where applicable, your name and preferences. Mailing list subscriptions are managed through MailerLite.

MailerLite states that, for customers in the UK, EEA or Switzerland, MailerLite Limited in Ireland acts in connection with the service, and MailerLite processes subscriber personal data on behalf of the customer.

3.5 Technical data, cookies and related technologies

When you use the website, certain technical information may be collected automatically, including your IP address, browser type, device information, referring pages and basic usage information.

We use standard WordPress cookies that are necessary for the operation, security and administration of the site; these do not require consent. We also use Google Analytics and related Google site management and SEO tools, including Google Site Kit/Search Console integrations where applicable. Analytics cookies are set only with your consent, which you can give or refuse via the cookie banner and change at any time.

3.6 Certificate ownership records

Where a work is sold with a Certificate of Authenticity, the buyer (and any later owner the work is transferred to) may register their ownership on the certificate's web page. For each current and former owner we collect and store:

• name and email address;
• a one-way keyed hash of the email address (used for indexed lookup); and
• the dates on which ownership was registered and, where applicable, transferred away.

The certificate's public verification page never shows this information — it shows only whether the work is registered, never to whom. Ownership records are visible only to Artistic Minds. The private registration and transfer codes used on these forms are stored only as one-way hashes, and IP addresses used to limit repeated attempts on the public forms are also stored only as one-way hashes, never in the clear.

3.7 Billing and invoicing records

To administer the fees described in our Terms and Conditions we keep a billing ledger and statement log containing: the artist's name, the charges incurred (annual fee, artwork, exhibition and certificate fees), invoice/statement numbers, the email address a statement was sent to, and payment status. For exhibition setup fees we also record the exhibition organiser's name, email address and telephone number as the billing contact — where you supply another person's details as organiser, you should make sure they are aware of this policy.

4. How we use personal data and our lawful bases

4.1 Artist accounts and website operation

We use personal data to review artist applications, create and manage artist profiles, publish artworks and artist information, administer the website, maintain security, and communicate with artists about their profiles or related exhibitions.

Our lawful bases for this processing are:

• contract, where processing is necessary to provide the artist profile service or take steps at the artist's request before providing it; and
• legitimate interests, namely operating, managing, improving and securing the website and associated services.

4.2 Contact and customer service

We use enquiry data to read, manage and respond to messages, deal with follow-up queries, and keep appropriate records.

Our lawful basis is legitimate interests, namely administering the business and responding to communications sent to us.

4.3 Mailing list and marketing emails

We use mailing list data to send updates about future events, exhibitions and related news. We rely on consent for sending electronic marketing messages to individual subscribers, and subscribers can unsubscribe at any time using the unsubscribe link in any email or by contacting us.

4.4 Analytics, performance and abuse prevention

We use analytics, logs and similar technical data to understand how the website is used, improve performance, diagnose problems, protect against abuse and maintain security.

Our lawful basis is legitimate interests, namely running a secure and effective website.

4.5 Promotion of artworks and artists

Where an artist uploads artwork and confirms the relevant permission, we may feature the artwork on the website, in newsletters, on our Instagram account, in promotional graphics and in press or publicity materials. Posts may include the artist's chosen name or pseudonym and, where provided for public use, a link to the artist's Instagram account.

This processing is carried out on the basis of contract and our legitimate interests in promoting the website, exhibitions and participating artists, together with the artist's specific confirmation for Instagram posting where used.

4.6 Certificates of Authenticity

We use certificate ownership records to:

• maintain the ownership and provenance record for each certificated work;
• send a confirmation email to a new owner on registration or transfer;
• notify the previous owner when ownership is transferred away from them, so an unauthorised transfer surfaces immediately;
• notify Artistic Minds of each registration and transfer as a safeguard against fraud; and
• notify the recorded owner if a certificate they own is voided, replaced, reported lost or stolen, reissued a new code, or has a transfer reversed.

Our lawful bases are contract (providing the registration service the owner has requested) and legitimate interests (maintaining a reliable provenance record and preventing fraud, which protects owners, artists and Artistic Minds alike). We use billing records (s.3.7) to invoice and account for fees on the bases of contract and legal obligation (keeping the accounting records the law requires).

5. Public and private artist information

An artist's private email address is used for administration and is not intended for public display.

Artists may choose to publish certain optional contact details, such as a public email address, public telephone number, Instagram handle or website. If an artist chooses to add this information, it may be displayed publicly on the website and may also appear in related promotional materials.

6. Hosting, storage and international transfers

The website is hosted on a virtual machine provided by Netcup, with the server located in Germany. This means website data is hosted within the EEA.

We also use third-party providers including MailerLite, Google services, Meta Platforms (Instagram) and Cloudflare. Some of these providers may process personal data outside the UK or EEA or may make international transfers using recognised safeguards under applicable data protection law, such as the UK International Data Transfer Agreement or Addendum.

7. Third-party services

We use the following third-party services or categories of service providers to operate the website and related services:

• Netcup for hosting infrastructure;
• Cloudflare and WPMUDev for CDN, proxying and website performance/security services;
• MailerLite for mailing list management and email communications;
• Meta Platforms (Instagram) where artwork is posted to our Instagram account with the artist's confirmation;
• Google Analytics for website analytics (with consent);
• Google reCAPTCHA to help prevent spam and abuse on forms;
• Google Fonts for web font delivery; and
• Google Search Console and/or Google Site Kit for website management and SEO-related insight.

If you follow a link to a third-party website or service, including Google Maps, Instagram or an artist's own website, that third party's own privacy policy and terms will apply.

8. Retention

We keep artwork and artist profile information until the artist deletes it, or until the account or content is deleted, archived or suspended by an administrator in accordance with our terms and operational needs.

Contact form enquiries are normally retained for up to 6 months.

Billing and invoicing records (s.3.7) are retained for as long as required for tax and accounting purposes — normally six years from the end of the relevant financial year.

Certificate ownership records (s.3.6) are retained for the life of the certificate, because they are the provenance record the certificate exists to provide. If you ask us to erase your data, we pseudonymise your entries instead of deleting them — see section 11.

We may retain limited records for longer where reasonably necessary for backups, security, abuse prevention, legal claims, compliance or business record-keeping.

9. Artist control, deletion and administration

Artists have autonomy over their own content and may delete their artworks and details, subject to the technical operation of the website. Administrators may also delete, archive or suspend accounts or remove content where reasonably necessary for legal, operational, security or moderation reasons.

Residual copies of data may remain in backups or logs for a limited period before being overwritten or securely deleted.

10. Children and younger artists

The website is intended primarily for adults aged 18 and over. Younger artists may be considered only in exceptional circumstances and only where appropriate parental or guardian consent has been provided; in that case the parent or guardian is the contracting party under our Terms and Conditions and we will communicate with them about the account.

11. Your data protection rights

Depending on the circumstances, you may have the right to:

• be informed about how your personal data is used;
• request access to your personal data;
• request correction of inaccurate data;
• request erasure of your data;
• request restriction of processing;
• object to certain processing;
• request transfer of certain data to you or another provider; and
• withdraw consent where processing is based on consent.

Erasure and certificate ownership records: because a provenance chain with a gap in it is worthless to every past and future owner of the work, we handle erasure of certificate ownership records by pseudonymisation — your name, email address and email hash are removed, while an anonymous link is kept in the certificate's ownership chain. After pseudonymisation, nothing in the record identifies you. This is described in section 21 of our Terms and Conditions.

To exercise your rights, contact us at dave@artistic-minds.uk. Access and erasure requests are handled through WordPress's personal-data export and erasure tools, which give you a verifiable record of the request.

12. Complaints

If you have any concerns about our use of your personal data, please contact us using the details at the top of this privacy notice. If you remain unhappy after raising a concern with us, you also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).

The ICO's contact details are available on its website at https://www.ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint.

13. Security

We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal data, including access controls, security tooling, and operational steps such as stripping metadata from uploaded artwork images before publication and storing certificate codes, owner email hashes and rate-limiting IP data only as one-way hashes.

However, no method of transmission over the internet or method of electronic storage is completely secure.

14. Future features

The site does not currently allow public comments. If commenting or other community features are introduced in future, this policy may be updated to explain what information is collected, how moderation works, and how related data is retained and used.

15. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Any changes will be posted on this page and the "Last updated" date will be changed accordingly.