Terms of Service

These Terms of Service (“Terms”) govern your access to and use of the Ateliera platform at ateliera.art (the “Platform”), operated by Ateliera Gallery FZE LLC, a free zone limited liability company registered in the Ajman NuVentures Centre Free Zone, United Arab Emirates, under Commercial Registration No. 2627214835888, with registered office at P.O. Box 117397, Dubai, United Arab Emirates (“Ateliera”, “we”, “us”, “our”).

1. Definitions and Interpretation

In these Terms, the following expressions have the meanings set out below. Words importing the singular include the plural and vice versa. Headings are for convenience only and do not affect interpretation.

• “Ateliera”, “we”, “us”, “our” means Ateliera Gallery FZE LLC, a free zone establishment registered in the Ajman NuVentures Centre Free Zone, United Arab Emirates, under Commercial Registration No. 2627214835888, with registered office at P.O. Box 117397, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
• “Platform” means the website at ateliera.art, any successor domain, all related subdomains, all mobile and other digital interfaces, and any associated services operated by Ateliera.
• “User” means any natural or legal person who accesses or uses the Platform in any capacity, whether as a visitor, registered Account holder, Artist, Collector, Partner, Advisor, Private Seller, or any other role offered.
• “Account” means the registered user account created on the Platform.
• “Content” means any text, image, video, audio, file, work of art, description, metadata, message, communication, or other material posted, uploaded, transmitted, or otherwise made available on or through the Platform.
• “Work” means a piece of art or other creative output listed on the Platform for display, sale, auction, or advisory purposes.
• “Transaction” means any commercial agreement entered into between Users (or between a User and a third party) that is facilitated, processed, listed, advertised, or otherwise touched by the Platform.
• “Commission” means any fee, premium, percentage, or other amount payable to Ateliera in connection with a Transaction.
• “UAE” means the United Arab Emirates.

2. Acceptance of these Terms

2.1  By accessing or using the Platform in any manner, you confirm that you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by these Terms, the Privacy Policy, the Cookie Policy, the Acceptable Use Policy, and any role-specific Addendum applicable to you. If you do not agree, you must not access or use the Platform.

2.2  These Terms constitute a legally binding agreement between you and Ateliera. You acknowledge that this agreement is concluded electronically, consistent with UAE Federal Decree-Law No. 46 of 2021 concerning Electronic Transactions and Trust Services, and that your acceptance is recorded with an authenticated timestamp and audit trail.

2.3  You confirm that you are at least 18 years of age (or the age of legal majority in your jurisdiction, whichever is higher), have full legal capacity to enter into this agreement, and are not subject to any sanction, prohibition, or legal disability that would render your participation unlawful.

2.4  If you are accepting these Terms on behalf of a company, partnership, trust, or other entity, you warrant that you are duly authorised to do so and that the entity is bound by these Terms.

3. Nature of the Platform — Marketplace, Not Principal

3.1  Ateliera operates the Platform as a marketplace and as a provider of ancillary services including but not limited to authentication, escrow administration, advisory facilitation, and content presentation.

3.2  Unless an express written contract between you and Ateliera states otherwise, Ateliera is not a party to any underlying contract of sale, purchase, consignment, advisory engagement, or other commercial arrangement between Users or between a User and any third party. Ateliera is, in such Transactions, an intermediary and facilitator only.

3.3  For the avoidance of doubt, when an Artist sells a Work to a Collector through the Platform, the contract of sale is between the Artist and the Collector. Ateliera’s role is limited to providing the marketplace, taking payment into escrow, releasing payment on satisfaction of the conditions set out in these Terms, and charging Commission. Ateliera does not warrant the title, originality, authenticity, condition, value, fitness for purpose, or any other characteristic of the Work itself, except to the limited extent set out in clause 8 (Authentication).

3.4  Ateliera may, in its sole discretion, act as principal in respect of specific Transactions clearly identified as such, including but not limited to direct sales of stock owned by Ateliera. Where it does so, the terms of that direct relationship will be stated in writing and will prevail over the marketplace framing of this clause.

4. Eligibility, Registration, and Account Integrity

4.1  Registration is subject to acceptance by Ateliera. Ateliera may refuse, suspend, or revoke registration at any time, with or without giving reasons, including but not limited to where (a) information provided is incomplete, false, or misleading; (b) the User appears on a sanctions list maintained by the UAE, the UN, the EU, or the US OFAC; (c) the User has been previously banned; (d) the User’s identity cannot be verified to Ateliera’s reasonable satisfaction; or (e) the User’s profile, history, or pattern of activity raises material concern as to fraud, money-laundering, or platform abuse risk.

4.2  You undertake to provide accurate, current, and complete information at registration and to keep that information current. Material changes (including legal name, registered address, beneficial ownership for entities, or banking details) must be notified within 30 days.

4.3  You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your login credentials and any two-factor or multi-factor authentication device. All activity occurring under your Account is deemed your activity unless you have given prompt written notice of compromise.

4.4  You may not (a) maintain more than one Account without Ateliera’s prior written consent; (b) transfer, sell, or otherwise assign your Account to another person; (c) impersonate another person or entity; or (d) create an Account for the purpose of evading a prior suspension or ban.

4.5  Where you have been banned from the Platform, Ateliera may maintain a record of identifying information (including email address, IP address, payment-method identifiers, and device fingerprint) for the purpose of preventing re-registration. Such processing is conducted on the legal basis of legitimate interest in Platform integrity under the UAE Personal Data Protection Law.

5. User Content and Intellectual Property

5.1  You retain all intellectual property rights in the Content you submit to the Platform. By submitting Content, you grant Ateliera a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, sublicensable, transferable licence to use, reproduce, distribute, prepare derivative works of, display, and perform that Content in connection with the operation, promotion, and improvement of the Platform and Ateliera’s business, including in marketing materials, social media, and editorial publications, for the duration of your Account and for a reasonable period thereafter for legitimate archival, dispute resolution, and historical purposes.

5.2  You warrant that the Content you submit (a) is your own original work or work for which you have all necessary rights, licences, consents, and permissions; (b) does not infringe any third-party intellectual property, privacy, publicity, or other right; (c) is not defamatory, obscene, threatening, harassing, hateful, or unlawful under any applicable law; (d) does not include or substantially incorporate output generated by artificial intelligence in a manner not expressly disclosed to and accepted by Ateliera; and (e) complies in all respects with UAE federal laws and Ajman NuVentures Centre Free Zone regulations, including those concerning public morals, religious sensitivities, and national security.

5.3  You agree to indemnify Ateliera, its officers, directors, employees, agents, and affiliates, and to hold them harmless from any and all claims, losses, damages, liabilities, costs, and expenses (including reasonable legal fees on a full indemnity basis) arising out of or related to any breach by you of the warranties in clause 5.2.

5.4  Ateliera reserves the right to remove, disable access to, or refuse to display any Content at its sole discretion, including but not limited to Content that Ateliera believes (acting reasonably) may violate any law, infringe any right, or harm the reputation of the Platform.

5.5  Notice and takedown. If you believe any Content on the Platform infringes your intellectual property rights, please send a written notice to legal@ateliera.art setting out (a) your identity and contact details; (b) identification of the work allegedly infringed; (c) identification of the Content alleged to infringe; (d) a statement under penalty of perjury that the information is accurate and that you are authorised to act; and (e) your signature, electronic or otherwise. Ateliera will act on substantiated notices within a reasonable time, and may, at its discretion, contact the User who posted the Content for response before acting.

6. Commission, Fees, and Payment

6.1  Ateliera’s Commission and fee structure is published on the Platform and may be updated from time to time. Material changes to the Commission structure will be notified to affected Users at least 30 days in advance of effective date.

6.2  Standard primary-market Commission is 30 percent of the gross sale price, allocated 30 percent to Ateliera (which absorbs third-party payment-processing fees from its portion), 5 percent to any introducing Partner (if applicable), and the remaining 65 percent to the Artist or selling User. Where no Partner is involved, the 5 percent partner portion accrues to the Artist or selling User (70 percent total).

6.3  Auction sales are subject to an additional buyer’s premium of 25 percent of the hammer price, payable by the buyer in addition to the hammer price. The buyer’s premium is retained by Ateliera as its sole commission on auction Transactions. The full hammer price net of any agreed deductions is remitted to the selling User.

6.4  Advisory commissions, advisor-set rates, and any negotiated overrides are governed by the Advisor Addendum and by the specific terms agreed in respect of each engagement.

6.5  All amounts are stated exclusive of any applicable VAT, sales tax, or other transaction tax. Where Ateliera is required to charge VAT under UAE law, VAT will be added to invoices and clearly identified.

6.6  Payments are processed through third-party payment providers including but not limited to Stripe Connect. By initiating a Transaction, you consent to the terms of service of any such third-party provider and acknowledge that Ateliera is not responsible for the acts, omissions, or service interruptions of such providers.

6.7  Funds collected from buyers are held in escrow until the conditions for release are satisfied, namely (a) physical delivery of the Work to the buyer; (b) expiry of the 3-day inspection window without an inspection dispute; and (c) absence of a chargeback, fraud alert, or other legal hold. On satisfaction of these conditions, Ateliera releases funds net of Commission and any agreed deductions to the selling User in accordance with the payout schedule selected.

7. Anti-Side-Deal and Anti-Circumvention

7.1  You acknowledge that Ateliera invests substantial resources in introducing Users to one another, in marketing Works, in providing authentication, in providing escrow, in providing dispute resolution, and in maintaining the integrity of the Platform. The Commission and fees described in clause 6 are the consideration that funds these investments.

7.2  You undertake that during your use of the Platform and for a period of 24 months after the conclusion of any contact made through the Platform, you will not enter into, complete, or facilitate any Transaction involving a Work, an Artist, a Collector, a Partner, or an Advisor identified or introduced to you through the Platform, otherwise than through the Platform, without the prior written consent of Ateliera.

7.3  For the purposes of this clause 7, “Transaction” includes any sale, purchase, consignment, loan, exchange, gift in conjunction with a sale, advisory engagement, or other commercial dealing of substantively similar economic substance.

7.4  You acknowledge that breach of clause 7.2 causes loss to Ateliera. In the event of proven breach, you will pay to Ateliera as compensation an amount equal to the Commission that would have been payable had the Transaction been completed through the Platform, calculated on the gross value of the off-platform Transaction, together with reasonable costs of investigation and enforcement.

7.5  Without prejudice to clause 7.4, Ateliera may at its discretion (a) immediately suspend or terminate any Account in breach; (b) record the identifying information of the breaching User under clause 4.5 to prevent re-registration; (c) report the matter to relevant regulatory authorities where the underlying Transaction may constitute money-laundering or tax evasion; and (d) pursue any other remedies available at law or in equity.

7.6  Ateliera operates automated and manual monitoring of communications between Users on the Platform for the purpose of detecting circumvention attempts, including but not limited to the sharing of off-platform contact details, the proposal of off-platform payment, and patterns of behaviour consistent with side-deal coordination. By using the Platform messaging system you consent to this monitoring on the legal basis of legitimate interest in Platform integrity.

8. Authentication, Provenance, and Disclaimer

8.1  Ateliera operates a multi-layered authentication process for Works listed on the Platform. This process may include, without limitation: image-forensic analysis, AI-content detection, reverse-image searching, EXIF metadata review, artist video verification, studio progression review, provenance documentation review, and where appropriate, physical inspection by Ateliera or by qualified third-party experts.

8.2  Authentication is provided as a service of reasonable diligence. Ateliera does not warrant, guarantee, or represent that any Work is authentic, original, undamaged, of a particular value, or fit for any particular purpose. Authentication scores, certificates, and badges issued by Ateliera reflect Ateliera’s good-faith assessment based on the information available, are not independent expert valuations, and must not be relied upon as such.

8.3  Without limiting the foregoing, you acknowledge that AI-content-detection technology is probabilistic and imperfect, that no single detector is reliable enough to be conclusive, and that Ateliera’s authentication conclusion is a holistic assessment of all available signals, not a binary technical verdict.

8.4  Where a Work later transpires to be inauthentic, misattributed, materially misrepresented, or otherwise not as described, your sole remedy against Ateliera (in its capacity as marketplace operator) is limited to (a) refund of the purchase price held in escrow, where escrow has not yet been released; (b) facilitation of a claim against the selling User; and (c) where the Work was sold within the past 90 days, Ateliera may at its discretion (but is not obliged to) make an ex gratia contribution towards the loss. Ateliera’s aggregate liability for any authentication failure is capped at clause 13.

8.5  Selling Users warrant the authenticity, title, and provenance of any Work they list. Ateliera relies on these warranties; their breach exposes the selling User to indemnity claims under clause 5.3.

9. Auctions

9.1  Auctions on the Platform are governed by the Auction Terms published from time to time. Bidding constitutes a binding offer to purchase at the bid amount plus applicable buyer’s premium, taxes, shipping, and other charges identified in the lot description.

9.2  You warrant that you have the financial capacity to honour any bid you make and undertake to make full payment within seven (7) calendar days of the fall of the hammer. Failure to pay on time entitles Ateliera to (a) charge default interest; (b) re-offer the lot at your risk and account; (c) recover any shortfall plus costs from you; (d) suspend or terminate your Account; and (e) report you to other auction houses with which Ateliera has reciprocal arrangements.

9.3  Shill bidding (bidding by the seller or by a person connected to the seller with the intent to inflate the price), syndicate bidding (coordinated bidding among a group of buyers with the intent to suppress the price), and any other manipulative bidding practice are strictly prohibited. Detection results in immediate cancellation of the affected Transactions, account termination, and may result in regulatory referral.

10. Money-Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing

10.1  Ateliera is committed to compliance with all applicable UAE laws and international standards concerning anti-money-laundering (AML) and counter-terrorism financing (CTF), including UAE Federal Decree-Law No. 20 of 2018 on Anti-Money Laundering and the Combating of the Financing of Terrorism and Financing of Illegal Organisations.

10.2  For Transactions equal to or exceeding USD 10,000 (or its equivalent in any currency), Ateliera may require enhanced due diligence, including identity verification of beneficial owners, source-of-funds documentation, and purpose-of-transaction statements. You agree to cooperate promptly with any such request.

10.3  Ateliera may, without notice and without liability, suspend, delay, refuse, or reverse any Transaction that it reasonably suspects (a) involves funds derived from criminal activity; (b) is conducted on behalf of a sanctioned person or jurisdiction; or (c) is otherwise contrary to applicable AML/CTF law.

10.4  Where required by law, Ateliera will report suspicious transactions to the UAE Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) and to other competent authorities. You acknowledge that “tipping off” is prohibited and that Ateliera may be unable to disclose the reason for any action taken under this clause 10.

11. Prohibited Use

11.1  You shall not use the Platform to:

• list, offer, sell, or transmit any content that is illegal, infringing, defamatory, obscene, threatening, harassing, racist, or that violates UAE laws, morals, or religious sensitivities;
• list Works that you do not own or are not authorised to sell;
• misrepresent the authenticity, authorship, condition, provenance, or value of any Work;
• submit AI-generated work as human-made, or otherwise misrepresent the medium, authorship, or process of creation;
• engage in any form of fraud, deception, money-laundering, tax evasion, or sanctions evasion;
• attempt to gain unauthorised access to the Platform, to any Account, or to any data not intended for you;
• introduce malware, scripts, scrapers, bots, or other automated means of accessing the Platform without express written permission;
• reverse-engineer, decompile, or otherwise attempt to derive the source code of any component of the Platform;
• use the Platform to send unsolicited commercial communications or to solicit Users away from the Platform;
• breach the anti-side-deal provisions of clause 7.

12. Suspension and Termination

12.1  Ateliera may suspend or terminate your access to the Platform, in whole or in part, with immediate effect and without prior notice, where Ateliera reasonably considers that you have breached these Terms or that suspension is necessary to protect the Platform, other Users, or third parties.

12.2  Ateliera may also terminate your Account for any reason or no reason on 30 days’ written notice. On termination, your right to use the Platform ceases immediately. Provisions of these Terms that by their nature should survive termination (including, without limitation, clauses 5.3, 7, 8.4, 13, 14, 15, 16, and 17) survive.

12.3  On termination, Ateliera will (a) complete any pending Transactions in flight, subject to any concurrent suspicion-of-fraud hold; (b) remit funds owed to you, net of fees, holds, and any indemnity claims, in accordance with the standard payout schedule; (c) retain such records as are required by law or as are reasonably necessary for the resolution of disputes; (d) anonymise or delete personal data as required by the Privacy Policy.

13. Limitation of Liability

13.1  To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, Ateliera, its officers, directors, employees, agents, affiliates, and licensors shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, exemplary, or punitive damages, including without limitation loss of profits, loss of business, loss of opportunity, loss of goodwill, loss of data, or loss of expected savings, however arising and whether in contract, tort (including negligence), statute, or otherwise.

13.2  To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, Ateliera’s aggregate liability to you arising out of or in connection with these Terms and your use of the Platform shall not exceed, in any twelve-month period, the greater of (a) the total Commission and fees paid by you to Ateliera in the twelve months preceding the event giving rise to the claim, or (b) USD 5,000.

13.3  Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits liability that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited, including liability for fraud, fraudulent misrepresentation, or for death or personal injury caused by negligence.

14. Indemnity

14.1  You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless Ateliera, its officers, directors, employees, agents, affiliates, and licensors from and against any and all claims, demands, actions, proceedings, losses, liabilities, damages, costs, and expenses (including reasonable legal fees on a full indemnity basis) arising out of or related to (a) your use of the Platform; (b) your breach of these Terms or of any law or third-party right; (c) the Content you submit; (d) any Transaction in which you are involved; and (e) any side-deal or circumvention activity in breach of clause 7.

15. Force Majeure

15.1  Neither party shall be liable for any failure or delay in performing its obligations under these Terms where such failure or delay results from circumstances beyond its reasonable control, including but not limited to acts of God, natural disasters, pandemic, sandstorm or other extreme weather, war, armed conflict, civil unrest, acts of terrorism, governmental action including sanctions and trade restrictions, internet or telecommunications outages, cyberattack, and failure of third-party service providers.

15.2  The party affected shall promptly notify the other and use reasonable efforts to mitigate. Obligations affected by force majeure are suspended for the duration of the event. Where force majeure persists for more than ninety (90) days, either party may terminate the affected obligations on written notice.

16. Governing Law and Dispute Resolution

16.1  These Terms, and any non-contractual obligations arising out of or in connection with them, are governed by and construed in accordance with the federal laws of the United Arab Emirates as applied in the Ajman NuVentures Centre Free Zone.

16.2  Any dispute, controversy, or claim arising out of or in connection with these Terms, including any question regarding their existence, validity, or termination, shall be referred to and finally resolved by arbitration administered by the Dubai International Arbitration Centre (DIAC) in accordance with its Arbitration Rules, which Rules are deemed to be incorporated by reference into this clause. The seat of arbitration shall be Dubai, UAE. The language of the arbitration shall be English. The number of arbitrators shall be one, unless either party requests three arbitrators and the other agrees.

16.3  Notwithstanding clause 16.2, Ateliera may seek injunctive or equitable relief, including for breach of clauses 5 (IP), 7 (anti-side-deal), or 11 (prohibited use), in any court of competent jurisdiction.

16.4  You waive any right to participate in any class action, collective action, or representative proceeding against Ateliera. All disputes must be brought individually. This waiver is severable: if it is held unenforceable as to UAE-resident consumers under UAE Consumer Protection Law, the remainder of these Terms continues in full force.

17. General

17.1 Entire agreement. These Terms, together with the Privacy Policy, the Cookie Policy, the Acceptable Use Policy, the Auction Terms, and any applicable Addendum, constitute the entire agreement between you and Ateliera in respect of the Platform and supersede all prior agreements and understandings.

17.2 Variation. Ateliera may amend these Terms from time to time. Material amendments will be notified to active Users by email and on the Platform at least 30 days in advance of effective date. Continued use of the Platform after the effective date constitutes acceptance.

17.3 Severability. If any provision of these Terms is held by a court or tribunal of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, illegal, or unenforceable, that provision shall be severed and the remainder shall continue in full force.

17.4 No waiver. Failure or delay by Ateliera in exercising any right shall not constitute a waiver of that right.

17.5 Assignment. You may not assign these Terms without Ateliera’s prior written consent. Ateliera may assign these Terms in whole or in part on notice, including in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets.

17.6 Third-party rights. Save as expressly provided, a person who is not a party to these Terms has no right to enforce them.

17.7 Notices. Notices to Ateliera shall be sent to legal@ateliera.art. Notices to you shall be sent to the email address on file for your Account.

17.8 Language. These Terms are written in English. Any translation is for convenience only; in the event of conflict, the English version prevails.

Ateliera Gallery FZE LLC · Commercial Registration 2627214835888 · Ajman NuVentures Centre Free Zone · P.O. Box 117397, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.