Association of Mouth and Foot Painting Artists of the World
Encyclopedia
The Association of Mouth and Foot Painting Artists of the World (AMFPA) was founded as the Vereinigung der Mund- und Fussmalenden Künstler in aller Welt, e. V. (VDMFK), in Liechtenstein
Liechtenstein
The Principality of Liechtenstein is a doubly landlocked alpine country in Central Europe, bordered by Switzerland to the west and south and by Austria to the east. Its area is just over , and it has an estimated population of 35,000. Its capital is Vaduz. The biggest town is Schaan...
in 1956. It is a commercial group of publishing houses that employs artists, who, for reasons of illness, accident or congenital disability
Congenital disorder
A congenital disorder, or congenital disease, is a condition existing at birth and often before birth, or that develops during the first month of life , regardless of causation...
have no use of their hands, and who use either their mouth or feet to create their work.
Prominent members include Alison Lapper
Alison Lapper
Alison Lapper MBE is an English artist who was born without arms. She is the subject of the sculpture Alison Lapper Pregnant, which was on display in Trafalgar Square until late 2007...
and Simona Atzori
Simona Atzori
Simona Atzori is an Italian artist and dancer who was born in Milan. She was born without arms, and uses her feet to draw, write and perform all other daily activities....
.
The main product of the company is Christmas cards with motifs painted by the member artists. These cards are sold every year in the months leading up to Christmas via direct mail
Direct mail
Advertising mail, also known as direct mail, junk mail, or admail, is the delivery of advertising material to recipients of postal mail. The delivery of advertising mail forms a large and growing service for many postal services, and direct-mail marketing forms a significant portion of the direct...
ing in 46 countries around the world (2004). Other products available through AMFPA include postcards, art prints and calendars.
The parent company in Liechtenstein acquires the reproduction rights of a given artwork and distributes it internationally. The original works are also sold at exhibitions held throughout the world.
The AMFPA represents 800 mouth and foot painting artists in 70 countries around the world. They receive grants or are taken on as members and receive a regular income for their artistic proficiency. Works produced by the members can be seen in the UN Headquarters in Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
or the European Council in Strasbourg
Strasbourg
Strasbourg is the capital and principal city of the Alsace region in eastern France and is the official seat of the European Parliament. Located close to the border with Germany, it is the capital of the Bas-Rhin département. The city and the region of Alsace are historically German-speaking,...
.
A. Erich Stegmann
The first president of the association - Arnulf Erich Stegmann - was a prominent figure in the development of Mouth and Foot Painting. Born in 1912 in Darmstadt, Germany, Stegmann lost the use of both arms and hands from polio at the age of two. Regardless, his artistic talents were soon recognized and supported by his teachers. He was proficient with a variety of brushes and styles, using only his mouth.He was educated at the School of Higher Education for Book Trade and Graphics in Nuremberg
Nuremberg
Nuremberg[p] is a city in the German state of Bavaria, in the administrative region of Middle Franconia. Situated on the Pegnitz river and the Rhine–Main–Danube Canal, it is located about north of Munich and is Franconia's largest city. The population is 505,664...
and studied with the artists Erwin von Kormöndy and Hans Gerstacker. He made a living selling his art cards and prints at marketplaces. After the Second World War Stegmann established his own publishing company with the poignant name "Dennoch" ("Anyway").
In 1953/54 he organized the group "Lodge of Mouth and Foot Painting Artists" as a type of artist community. From there, the international "Association of Mouth and Foot Painting Artists" was formed and A. E. Stegmann was voted president for life.
Controversies
The AMFPA has in later years been the subject of several exposés in GermanGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Swiss
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, Norwegian
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and Danish
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
media, suggesting unethical behaviour within the organization. The coverage has spurred criticism from charity, consumer and handicap organizations. The criticism includes:
- That AMFPA effectively poses as a charity organization although it is purely a commercial venture, in effect conningConfidence trickA confidence trick is an attempt to defraud a person or group by gaining their confidence. A confidence artist is an individual working alone or in concert with others who exploits characteristics of the human psyche such as dishonesty and honesty, vanity, compassion, credulity, irresponsibility,...
charitable people out of money.. - That only a fraction of the surplus is paid out to the handicapped artists, since only 94 (2008) of them are fully employed by the company, which in turn allegedly turns a world wide profit in the hundreds of millions US$. The precise world wide profit is confidential.
- That high salaries, favourable loans and property lease contracts are given to AMFPAs long-time legal adviser Herbert Batliner, his friends and family and other lawyers employed at the AMFPA. Recently retired Batliner is himself a controversy, being previously accused of money laundering for Colombian drug barons and for his alleged involvement in the 1999 German CDU contribution scandal.
- That funds are being diverted to unknown parties via a network of "mailbox" companies.
- The use of high pressure sales tactics by sending its main sales item, Christmas card packages to consumers via unsolicited direct mailDirect mailAdvertising mail, also known as direct mail, junk mail, or admail, is the delivery of advertising material to recipients of postal mail. The delivery of advertising mail forms a large and growing service for many postal services, and direct-mail marketing forms a significant portion of the direct...
with an option to pay afterwards. - The secrecy maintained by the company.
No claims have been made suggesting any illegal activity by AMFPA. The criticism has been centered on what is perceived as bad ethics
Ethics
Ethics, also known as moral philosophy, is a branch of philosophy that addresses questions about morality—that is, concepts such as good and evil, right and wrong, virtue and vice, justice and crime, etc.Major branches of ethics include:...
.
AMFPAs responds to the criticism
The AMFPA has in some news reports and court hearings responded to some of the claims, stating that AMFPA has never intentionally presented itself as a charitable organization, but instead has explicitly pointed its commercial nature out to consumers. AMFPA has also stated that 80% of the world wide profits are distributed among the artist. AMFPA declined to present financial records to support this claim.Litigation
In June 2007 the company sued Danish Broadcasting CorporationDanmarks Radio
DR – officially rendered into English as the Danish Broadcasting Corporation – is Denmark's national broadcasting corporation. Founded in 1925 as a public-service organization, it is today Denmark's oldest and largest electronic media enterprise...
and Danish daily Ekstra Bladet
Ekstra Bladet
Ekstra Bladet is a Danish tabloid newspaper focusing on sensationalist stories. It gets a share of its income from sex ads. Since 1979 it has always had a partly or completely naked woman on page nine which is referred to as Side 9 Pigen , a Danish equivalent of the English Page Three girl...
for libel after negative coverage during December 2005. On October 10 2008 the High Court of Eastern Denmark ruled in favor of the accused journalists, stating that there was sufficient factual basis for statements like: "Behind the scenes we found a well-oiled money making machine with economic puppeteers, who are scraping in money with arms and legs", "People think they are supporting a charity, but in reality we are looking at a money making machine" and "...only a measly 3% is going to the mouth and foot painting artists". AMFPA has not appealed the decision.