Case Study

Working with an Art Centre 

An organisation wishes to licence an existing work of an Art Centre artist to be printed on a range of retail merchandise. The organisation conducts its own research on the artist, including the history of the Art Centre the artist works with, the type of work the artist has produced and exhibited including any other licensing opportunities. The organisation also performs research on the licensing process including the involvement of manufacturers and retailers. 

The organisation puts together a written proposal setting out its request to licence the artwork, setting out information including the background of the organisation, the artist and the artist artwork the subject of the request (if known), the intended use of the work, where and how the work is intended to be reproduced, manufactured and sold, the budget proposed including licensing fees, upfront fees, consultation fees and proposed timelines. The proposal acknowledges that timeframes are flexible. The organisation emails the proposal to the artist seeking an opportunity to discuss further without imposing urgent timeframes for a response.  

The Art Centre considers the request, and seeks further direction from the Art Centre board. Subsequently, the Art Centre makes contact with the organisation setting up a time to discuss further, and makes further requests for information about the timeframes and payment. The organisations considers the feedback provided by the Art Centre, discusses the feedback with the Art Centre in good faith and makes adjustments to the proposal accordingly. The Art Centre advises that before proceeding further, permissions will need to be sought from community members given the nature of the work to be used. The organisation makes changes to the timeline so that permissions can be sought. 

After some time passes, the Art Centre, after seeking advice from the community, informs the organisation the proposal can proceed to the next stage of negotiating and agreement making. 

The Art Centre either:

• drafts the licence and manages the project itself

• refers to Arts Law for the provision of a licensing agreement and advice on its legal position

• refers to another legal advisor for the provision of an agreement or legal advice 

• refers to Copyright Agency for the provision of a licence agreement and management of the licensing process from beginning to end 

Throughout any option selected the organisation remains committed to ensuring the Art Centre and artist is kept informed of developments, ongoing and informed consent is sought in relation to the use of the work. This includes the ability for the artist to review samples or request changes. The organisation complies with relevant agreements, and provides reports and information on sales, revenue and fees to be paid to the artist (including if requested directly).