Bob Dylan, an Americana legend and 10-time Grammy award-winner, is well-known for his famously sung songs. couldn’t be bothered To issue a statement following becoming the first musician to win a Nobel prize in music, issued an unusual apology for using a machine which automatically duplicated his signature.
The machine-generated signatures appeared on limited purchases of Dylan’s new book, Modern Song Philosophy Fans, According to CNN reported that it paid over $599 to purchase one of the 900 copies. of the book which were supposed to ship with a “hand signed” signature from the living legend. Instead, after receiving their books, frustrated fans uploaded copies of the signatures online. Be aware The signatures, which were supposedly handwritten, looked horribly similar.
Growing fan backlash over the eerily similar signatures forced the book’s publisher, Simon & Schuster, to release a statement admitting the autographs weren’t exactly as genuine as purchasers were led to believe.
“As it turners out, the limited edition books do contain Bob’s original signature, but in a penned replica form,” the publisher wrote on Twitter. “We are addressing this immediately by providing each purchaser with an immediate refund.”
That apology didn’t assuage some purchasers who felt misled by both Simon & Schuster and Dylan himself, for persuading them to drop nearly $600 on unclear terms. One user responding to the publisher’s tweet shared an image of a certification document accompanying one the books which assured readers they possessed, “something very special.”
Dylan released his rare public Facebook update just one week after the scandal began. Statement Recognizing the failure.
“To my fans and followers,” Dylan wrote. “I’ve been made aware that there’s some controversy about signatures on some of my recent artwork prints and on a limited-edition of Philosophy Of Modern Song.” DylThen, he continued to state that while he had previously hand signed every one of his prints over the years, he began requiring assistance in 2019 due to bouts of “vertigo.”
Dylan claims that at first aid was provided by five assistants who worked in close quarters to help with the singing sessions. Dylan claims that these sessions were impossible because of the social distancing guidelines and pandemic. That’s where the so-called “auto-pen” comes in.
“So, during the pandemic, it was impossible to sign anything and the vertigo didn’t help,” Dylan said. “With contractual deadlines looming, the idea of using an auto-pen was suggested to me, along with the assurance that this kind of thing is done ‘all the time’ in the art and literary worlds.”
By auto-pen, Dylan’s referring to a type of automated signature technology that’s existed, in various forms, for a very long time. Typically these machines are able to make a copy of the original writer’s signature and replicate it using a variety of writing instruments. Though several companies make automated signature machines, “Autopen” in particular refers to This particular device The DAMILIC Corporation invented the autopen 60 years ago. Prior to the invention of the modern autopen, prominent diplomats from 19th-century America used them, including U.S. president Thomas Jefferson. The technology’s use has only expanded since Both have used the allegedly. Barack Obama George W. Bush in certain cases to sign legislation.
Autopen and its congenially created clones may be useful tools to celebrities for avoiding spending long hours signature-writing, but they are hated by the collector community for complicating or devaluing signatures of supposedly genuine artists. When it comes to Herculean staminaThese signatures, especially for Dylans, can cost you a lot. Original Dylan signatures on art prints The Guardian NotesThe current price of a, is around $14,000. Autograph Live is a website that verifies the authenticity of signatures from celebrities. Estimates Simon & Schuster may use a total of 17 different templates for the Dylan Autopen signatures.
Autopen’s recent revelations have led people, such as Castle Fine Art in the UK, to question whether their Dylan signatures are authentic. A statement viewed by Castle Fine Art stated two of its Dyla batches as VarietyAn autopen was used to sign n prints.
“We were informed very recently that during the Covid 19 pandemic Bob Dylan used an autopen to sign several of his print editions, rather than his usual hand signature,” Castle Fine Art said. “We were entirely unaware of autopen on these prints; nevertheless, we sincerely apologize for this very regrettable situation and want to make matters right.” Like Simon & Schuster, Castle Art said it would offer purchasers a full refund.